Simple answer: No. In the GDR, several people working in governmental services even got executed for trying to drop out. they also had a paragraph saying that writing disparagingly about the GDR was to be penalized with not less than three years prison. The chief of staSi, Mielcke, was absolutely unforgiving on members of the official organs not fulfilling their duties, and defended a position of total mercylessness on such "traitors". A case of a StaSi-member actively protecting subjects of StaSi-Observation is not known. The cultural scene in the GDR was heavily infested with StaSi-spies.

In Germany, the film was discussed quiet controversial,and especial eastgerman victim organizations protested about the movie's perceived attitude to paint the picture of a staSi which had room enough for individuals to show a heart, and forgiveness. Such victim organizations, and private persons suffering from the StaSi-tyranny, are very angry about this movie. the movie got more warm attention outside Germany, then inside Germany.

Being undecided in the beginning, I consider it to be controversial, at best. I cannot recommend it, and the more time went by, the less i liked the movie. It serves several cliches about the GDR, not the reality. There were better German movies on history in the past couple of years, and in the decades before as well.

I also do not like the director. Saw him three times on TV, also read interviews with him in papers, and he proved to be an arrogant, pseudo-intellectual bigmouth claiming to speak for all German society. Bah.

Thanks for that. I got out the movie cause i liked the main actor forgot his name but saw him for the first time act in another movie WW2 about a Jewish woman that becomes a spy for the british and falls in love with a nazi officer who he played, when the town was occupied by the allies the canadians handed him over to the nazis and they shot him for treason against germany.

That was (suppose) to be based on a true story.

Some more for the friends of silent humour:

http://de.sevenload.com/videos/kBfJu...iot-im-Konzert
(without words)


One of his most famous, if not the most famous of his sketches:

http://de.sevenload.com/videos/KNCavGf/Loriot-Kalbshaxe
(German)


And a little mean and dirty christmas-poem. In the sixties, at first release, it lead to a scandal and provoked a day of debate in parliament:

http://www.yolanthe.de/aktuell/advent/adv-loriot.htm

That's like 4 words more than I do. But Gunter Grass is one of my favorite authors, which makes me want to learn German.