Good german movies?

Question

I have Lola Rennt and das boot.

I like drama/historical films, but i'm fine with any movie someone recommends

Answer 1

Check out the works of Fatih Akin, a Turkish-German director. "Gegen die Wand" ("Head On") should be out on DVD, and "Auf der anderen Seite" has only just been released to theatres, but do put it on your "to see" list, I saw it a few days ago and it's brilliant.

Another director worth checking out is Tom Tykwer, whom you already know from Lola Rennt. "Der Krieger und die Kaiserin" (called "The Warrior and the Empress" or sometimes "The Princess and the Warrior" in English) is excellent, too, quite different from Lola, but still.

Another line of recommendations is films with Daniel Brühl, he's a very good German actor. If you can get it, start out with "Nichts bereuen" ("No Regrets") , that's a coming of age drama. In "Das weiße Rauschen" ("The White Sound"), he plays a young man suffering from bouts of mental illness, but it isn't as depressing as my summary makes it sound. And finally, "Was nützt die Liebe in Gedanken" ("Love in Thoughts") should be right up your alley if you are interested in history, it focuses on a group of teens growing up in Germany in the 1920s and is based on a true story, this one has a fascinating atmosphere.

Some more films that come to my mind: "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" (Road movie directed by actor Til Schweiger), "Sophie Scholl" (about student resistance against Hitlers regime, nominated for an Oscar), "Männerpension" ("Jailbirds", very funny, a few years old, but great), "Nackt" ("Naked" by Doris Dörrie, a film about couples and why they stay together or break up, very touching and fun at the same time), oh, and of course "Was nicht passt, wird passend gemacht" ("If It Don't Fit, Use a Bigger Hammer", a comedy set in the Ruhrgebiet area that has a very special humour, but do give it a try).

@ Alwin: Maybe you want to check before you claim other people offer wrong translations. I know as well as you what Das Weiße Rauschen means literally. Still, the international release title for the film was "The White Sound", and that's what Stephen needs to go searching for a copy of the film. It's the same with "If It Don't Fit, Use a Bigger Hammer" - not exactly a literal translation of the German title :o) , but that's what you have to look for.

http://german.imdb.com/title/tt0276617/

Answer 2

Loved the movie "The lives of others" which I saw this year - brilliant.  Have also enjoyed "Run Lola run" and "The experiment".

Answer 3

Alles auf Zucker

Jenseits der Stiille

Der bewegte Mann -http://imdb.com/title/tt0109255/plotsumm...

Go Trabi Go - http://imdb.com/title/tt0101960/plotsumm...

Hunger auf Leben

Herbstmilch

Kebab Connection

Knockin' On Heaven's Door

Der Laden (Director: J. Baier, shot 1998)

Nirgenwo in Afrika http://imdb.com/title/tt0161860/

Männer http://imdb.com/title/tt0089656/

Metropolis (shot 1927, famous Science Fiction movie)

Die Mörder sind unter uns

Otto (6 movies with German comedian Otto Waalkes)

Schtonk!

Der Schuh des Manitu (Comedy making fun of the Karl May Wild West cult in Germany)

T(R)aumschiff Surprise: Periode 1 (Star Trek/Star Wars Parody)

Sommersturm

Sonnenallee

Süperseks http://imdb.com/title/tt0384576/

Verbotene Liebe

The "Werner" series (animation comedy based in Northern Germany, heavy dialect)

Das Wunder von Bern

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alles_auf_Z...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyond_Sile...

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Der_bewegte...

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go_Trabi_Go

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunger_auf_...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbstmilch

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebab_Conne...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knockin%27_...

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%A4nner...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murderers_A...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schtonk%21

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Der_Schuh_d...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_Stor...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonnenallee

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traumschiff...

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verbotene_L...

http://www.werner-broesel.de/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Miracle...

Answer 4

For a classic film, check out 'M', which is a black & white movie about a child murderer in Berlin- all of the other criminals have their activities restricted by the increase in police due to the killer, so they decide to get him...also from this era is Metropolis, which is stunning visually and story-wise.

"Triumph of the Will" is extremely important; directed by the notorious Leni Reifstahl, it's a documentary about the Olympics in Germany in the 30s.  It is a Naxi propaganda film in many ways, but the cinematography was groundbreaking and still influences movie-makers today.

For modern films, I reccomend Bandits, a fun rock'n'roll movie about female convicts/musicians on the run from the law.  

Goodbye Lenin! is a very important recent film.  A mix of drama and comedy, it's about a young man from East Berlin whose mother falls into a coma.  When she wakes up, her health is so fragile that doctors fear she can't take the shock of hearing that the Wall fell, so he has to fake communism for her as the world around him changes dramatically.  This is one of my favorite movies of all times.

And finally, for a good romantic comedy, get In July, which is a great European roadtrip film.

Have fun!

Answer 5

''When Trumpets Fade''  If you like war movies this is a classic.  or ''Schindlers List''  But you have to watch them in German

Answer 6

die feuerzangenbowle

best movie ever  black &white

Answer 7

A German Werewolf in Mexico. (With English subs)

About the funniest freakin b-movie I saw in my life.

Answer 8

try:

The Tin Drum

  and

Beyond Silence

Answer 9

I don't understand why people keep recommending American films like Schindler's List ... the OP is asking for German movies, not movies about Germans / Germany....

As far as German movies ...

"Der Untergang" is an excellent film about the last days of Hitler. You may also like "Aimee & Jaguar", which is also set in World War II and is about a Jewish L*****n and her German lover (in a nutshell, anyway). It's a very good film.

For drama, the movie "Was Tun Wenn's Brennt" is pretty good. You can read more about it here - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0207198/plot...

If you like old movies, I definitely have to second "Die Feuerzangenbowle" - that one is a German classic. It's based on a book and stars Heinz Ruehmann, who also made a lot of other movies. Ruehmann is a very good comedic actor of the 1930s. Other movies with Ruehmann that are worth seeing are "Quax der Bruchpilot", "Der Stolz der 3. Kompanie", and "Die Drei von der Tankstelle". The latter movie has some very well known German songs in it.

IMDB has a full list of all Ruehmann movies here - http://imdb.com/name/nm0004464/

Answer 10

> "Das weiße Rauschen" ("The White Sound")

@kat, I have nothing to add to your list, but I have to correct you with your translation. "Weißes Rauschen" is a technical term that translates as "white noise". I just couldn't let you get through with another wrong translation. 99% of the German people who don't know about electronics do that wrong.

Except for movies, you might want to look out for TV serials on the Internet. "Derrick", for instance, is always worth a look; it's Germany's most translated crime serial. I even saw an episode of it in Bangalore, India, with Horst Tappert dubbed in Hindi! And then there's "Forsthaus Falkenau" ("Falkenau Forestery"), "Die Rosenheim-Cops", and the everlasting soap, "Lindenstraße". You can watch it on the internet here:

http://www.lindenstrasse.de/lindenstrass...

Answer 11

i liked apt pupil.

I think it fiction but it is about a kid who finds out his teacher is in the hitler army. very interesting.

Answer 12

Others I know of.

Oktoberfest - a drama, similar to the films of Robert Altman, about a day at the famous Munich festival.

The Comedian Harmonists - despite the English name, this is a German film, about the famous singing group in the 30s.  I find this a very easy film to understand.

Bella Martha - about an introverted chef who raises her neice - was the original film for No Reservations, and is very good.

Jenseits der Stille - Coming of age story about a woman who grows up with deaf parents.  

Der Blaue Engel - the famous Marlene Dietrich film is still very watchable.

Kleine Haie - Kind of a German "fame" about students auditioning for a performing arts school.  

I also second recommendations for das Leben der Anderen and Goodbye Lenin.  I have heard Wings of Desire is good, also.

Answer 13

I just saw Leben der Anderen (2006)  (The lives of others). It also won the Oscar for the best foreign film in Feb. 2007.

I liked it.

Answer 14

Aw scheisse.... I was going to say Run Lola Run.. one of my favorite movies of all time

Answer 15

If you like historical films, you should definitely watch Der Untergang (narrating the last days of Hitler in power) and Das wunder von Bern (not exactly historical, it's about  the championship-winning German soccer team of 1954). Sonnenallee is not bad - life on the other side of the wall.

I have also enjoyed Knockin' on heaven's door (although it has a sad ending), Bella Martha (brilliant acting by Martina Gedek as a "cold" chefin, who suddenly has in her life her orphan niece) and above all, as already mentioned, Das Leben der Anderen, it is the best.