Have you ever started at movie on the telly at night thinking you would finish watching it at another time.
I attempted that last night with The Lives of Others, and failed horribly! It has been out for a while and I have wanted to see it, just haven't got around to it. So last night it was on one of the movie channels. I setup the DVR to record it. I'll just watch maybe the first ten minutes to get a feel for it.....
The movie is set in East Berlin during the 80's. German is the spoken language, with English subtitles. I haven't watched a good "foreign" film for quite some time. The last great films I saw were The Three Colors Trilogy, that might be stretching it but it was the 90's. I love historical movies, and this one being set near the end of the Berlin Wall kept me up in my bed, not wanting to miss what would happen next.
I don't plan on boring you with all the details of the film in my own words. I was just captured and enamored by this film, watching it till the wee hours of the morning. It is not a political thriller, but a segment of history that we sometimes tend to forget in today's world filled with terrorist on every side, with all information being managed by the powers that be to protect us from the hidden dangers that lurk outside and within. Are we safe or just scared. Much like the East German people from the Cold War.
I didn't start this post as a political rant on the current state of affairs in the world, but sometimes I just ramble my way into this type of thing.
The theme is change. Each character changes as the film progresses. It's what they do with this change that makes the differences in the world around them.
I highly recommend seeing it if you have not.
Have you seen The Lives of Others?
If so what did you think?
What is the change in your life?
I haven't seen it. It won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film a while back, didn't it?
ReplyDeleteI enjoy a good foreign film. (subtitles, no dubbing please!) Have you ever seen del Toro's The Devil's Backbone? Excellent film set during the Spanish war.
For some reason I never saw Del Toro as a foreign film maker. Strange-o-rama! I agree with the no English dubbing. Much like the Anime I watch, it is in Japanese with subtitles. I feel you can get a better understanding of the movie with the original actors voices.
ReplyDeleteI heard about this when it came out but never watched it. Sunday night I watched a decent horror movie called "Dead Snow" that was I think in German with subtitles. I don't really mind the subtitles but I usually watch movies with captioning on anyway just to make sure I don't miss anything.
ReplyDeleteGood idea watching with the subtitles on, I find that in my house If I watch anything while the kids are awake I have to either turn it up to the point of hearing loss, or rewind it over and over to catch some conversation i missed.
ReplyDeleteThis is a movie I'll get around to seeing at some point.
ReplyDeleteIt is well worth it.
ReplyDeleteIt did win 2006!
ReplyDeleteI've never seen it, but it's an important part of history. Considering it's a low budget film it did really well.
ReplyDeleteThe acting is superb. You definitely get a feel for what people in a government system like East Germany must have gone through on a daily basis. The fear and paranoia of being interrogated by the Stasi hangover everyone.
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen it but it does sound interesting. I can relate - often get drawn into a film and well, that's the end of getting anything else done!
ReplyDeleteGetting 3.5 hours of sleep didn't kill me, but it sure made for a long day.
ReplyDeleteI do the same with books. For some reason with e-books, I can find a stopping point. I don't have a kindle I read it on the Laptop, so maybe that is why.
It's an interesting period. Not heard of this, I might have to check it out. I rarely plan to watch films, I'm quite random, but it's nice when you get drawn into something unexpectedly!
ReplyDeleteI have not seen this movie, but I'm sure it's one my husband and I would both enjoy!
ReplyDeleteExactly, I wanted to see it, and planed on viewing it latter at a more reasonable time. It lured me into its world by having characters that I started to care about rather quickly.
ReplyDeleteI have a confession to make. I was to watch it with my wife the next day...she still doesn't know I saw it without her...I will confess before we watch it together. That doesn't take away the fact that I won't enjoy it a second time....or will it?
ReplyDeleteThis looks like something I'd love! Thanks for the recommend--might have to watch this tonight :) (And wasn't the colors trilogy amazing? I seriously am needing to watch those again!)
ReplyDeleteIt is definitely worth the price of admission! ;)
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen the Colors Trilogy in a long while.(late 90's maybe)
I need to watch those again soon.
I have never seen that film. I appreciate a film that impacts my life. I started watching a movie on telly and decided to watch the rest of it at a later time. It was Groundhog Day and I got confused. I started watching a movie on telly and decided to watch the rest of it at a later time. It was Groundhog Day and I got confused.
ReplyDeleteHA! Only you would use Groundhog day as a basis for comparison!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a good movie, and I've always been fond of foreign movies with subtitles. I'll have to check it out. Life can be same old, same old, then in a blink of an eye, life can change so quickly....
ReplyDeleteTrue, the East Germans probably never suspected or fathomed that the Berlin Wall would ever come down.
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