Anyone seen these 3 WWII related german movies?

[Dowly]

'ello

Came across these 3 german flicks while trying to find something good to watch. If anyone's seen them, would like to know if they were any good.

The movies are:

So weit die Füße tragen (2001)

Anonyma - Eine Frau in Berlin (2008)

Der letzte Zug (2006)

[Sailor Steve]

Not me.

I'm planning on ordering The Comedian Harmonists, though.

I know, I know, no help at all.

[August]

Sorry Dowly, never heard of them either, but I bet it doesn't end well for the hero.

[Thomen]

Originally Posted by Dowly

'ello

Came across these 3 german flicks while trying to find something good to watch. If anyone's seen them, would like to know if they were any good.

The movies are:

So weit die Füße tragen (2001)

Not sure about the last two, but I did watch the mini series to the above one 20 years or so ago.

"So weit die Füße tragen" (Mini series, 1959)


As far as I remember, it was very interesting.

[joegrundman]

i saw "so weit die Fuesse tragen"

it's a good, rather than great, film, but memorable. it's not a war film though.

[kranz]

Originally Posted by joegrundman

i saw "so weit die Fuesse tragen"

it's a good, rather than great, film, but memorable. it's not a war film though.

I agree with that. This film is one of the examples when the adaptation appears to be better than the book it was based on. I read the novel by Josef Martin Bauer some time ago, unfortunately after watching the movie, and for me it was simply unbelievable. The film makes the story more plausible.
It's worth noting that some people claim that this particular escape never took place and was only made up by the author plus someone else.

[kiwi_2005]

Ive seen 'A woman in Berlin' 8 out of 10 for me, good movie.

[Herr-Berbunch]

Originally Posted by Dowly

... german flicks while trying to find something good to watch.

And what was the something good? Does the title invole a**terisks?

[Skybird]

My parents told me that back in its time, late 50s early/60s, the original series "So weit die Füße tragen" was cult that emptied the streets when it was broadcasted. But you can only understand that in the context of that long forgotten era. From today's perspective I find it rather unimpressive. The new version that you ask about, is even more unimpressive.

"Anonyma" is a movie about the true biography of a woman in Berlin after the Soviets occupied it. Her biography represents the fate of hundreds and thousands of young girls and women in the Soviet sector that suffered rape by the Soviet victors. The love story in the movie is said to be rather unrealistic, though, like the one you see in "Das Leben der Anderen" as well. The movie is a production of German private TV and is very typical in style for that origin. It left me unimpressed, and I did not watch it to the end. The theme of mass rape dpone by Soviet occupation troops was a long held taboo in Germany, the movie caused the first public discussion of this dark chapter of history.

"Der letzte Zug" I don't know. But the director, Vilsmeier, is one of the German film directors with the highest national reputation in the business. The film seems to tell the story of one of the last train transports of Jews from Berlin to Auschwitz. It gets a clean 5 star rating from customers at German Amazon.

If you are into German war movies, probably the best - still so - is the first and orginal movie "Die Brücke". Check the excellent feedback at the American Amazon site: http://www.amazon.com/Bridge-Die-Bru...7298678&sr=8-1
Do not pick the new remake from two or three years ago, it again is a bad TV production - one of those remakes nobody ever needed.

And another superb, though very heavy, film is "Sophie Shcoll - The last days". It is superb, but I warn you, the end is so shocking and harsh (although you know what is coming) that it will break your heart. No light popcorn-entertainment! The film again got excellent feedback at US Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Sophie-Scholl-...7298792&sr=1-1

If you are more about German movies in general and not fixiated on the WWII-era, watch out for Tom Tykwer. "Winterschläfer" is marvellous and most poetic and original (one of my all time favourite movies), and won a national movie award. Also very good are "Heaven" with Kate Blanchet, and "Der Krieger + die Kaiserin".

http://www.amazon.com/Winter-Sleeper...7300416&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/Princess-Warri...7300513&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Heaven-Cate-Bl...7300545&sr=1-1

Tykwer is the most talented German director and film maker since very long time.

[Dowly]

Thanks everyone.

@Herr-Berbunch

No! I swear!

@Skybird

I'm pretty much at the point where I've exhausted most of the Finnish and American
movies I've intended to see over the years, so yeah, I'm looking for new grounds
to cover. German movies would be one good candidate to check out next. It's the language
in most other foreign movies that usually keeps me from watching them, tho german is something
I can tolerate.

I'll check out Die Brücke first, seen it mentioned quite a few times on other forums
I frequent.

Again, thanks everyone.

[Skybird]

I recommend to check out - Soviet-made movies about WWII, made after the war. No joke. Most of them are propaganda movies, yes, but there are a few most beautifully shining gems of a most fragile visual language and deep humanity. When germany was still devided, we got Eastgerman TV programs as well, and there they broadcasted many Soviet movies. Mostly it was bad propaganda, but occasionally they showed extraordinary good, beautiful movies. Unfortunately, I cannot remember names and titles, I have some scenes and some films on mind that I never forgot and that still touch me today, but I cannot attribute them to a title or director. Too bad. You need advise from somebody knowing.

[Dowly]

Originally Posted by Skybird

I recommend to check out - Soviet-made movies about WWII, made after the war. No joke. Most of them are propaganda movies, yes, but there are a few most beautifully shining gems of a most fragile visual language and deep humanity. When germany was still devided, we got Eastgerman TV programs as well, and there they broadcasted many Soviet movies. Mostly it was bad propaganda, but occasionally they showed extraordinary good, beautiful movies. Unfortunately, I cannot remember names and titles, I have some scenes and some films on mind that I never forgot and that still touch me today, but I cannot attribute them to a title or director. Too bad. You need advise from somebody knowing.

Only seen one Soviet-made movie so far and that was "Come and See",
liked it very much. Althought the long cuts and the platant demonizing of
the germans almost ruined it for me.

All in all, russia is one of those languages that really bugs me in movies, dunno why,
it just does. But I have been planning on watching Stalker finally in the near
future.

[Oberon]

Battle of Moscow looks quite good from what I've seen of it.

Don't know what your Russian is like Dowly, but it's here:

The tanks are a bit dodgy in places, but not as bad as Battle of the Bulge

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Dowly

Only seen one Soviet-made movie so far and that was "Come and See",
liked it very much. Althought the long cuts and the platant demonizing of
the germans almost ruined it for me.

All in all, russia is one of those languages that really bugs me in movies, dunno why,
it just does. But I have been planning on watching Stalker finally in the near
future.

That is a better situation in Germany, we do language dubs on all and everything. And we are very good in doing so. Often the German voices the studios choose match the actor better than the actor's natural one! Textlines in a movie most of us find extremely annoying and distracting.

And not all Soviet movies demonise the Germans, though most do - that are the ones that also hopelessly overglorify the role of the Russian soldiers. But the movies I have on mind do not explicitly center on the Germans, the war is just a background against which the story is being told. One film I remember is about a girlk on a Russian farm waiting for her love to return from the front. Simplistic and beautifully played, ordinary life, a strong and natural human touch. A rumour is heared that he got killed. She is desparate, gets over it, marries another one. Other young soldiers return, celebrate and dance with their girls by the fire. She stays by herself, but with a few shy look at a new man her life already starts to set for a new and hopeful direction, despite her sadness. Later her early love returns, alive, and finds his girl married. World collapses, world raises again. All without any Hollywood pathos or sentimentalism, but still told in a humane tone, and full of understanding for the implications of man'S imperfect ways, filmed in black-white and with calm images of the landscape and farmer's life. It is not the famous movie "The Cranes are flying". I would really like to know what the film's title is that I mean, it touched me so intensely like only few other movies.

The bombastic battle dramas usually are not my taste, not the 40s/50s/60s Hollywood productions and not the Soviet counterparts as well. I find both very dumb.

[August]

There's this German war movie I saw awhile back you guys might like. It's called "The Boat" or something like that...