Les métamorphoses / Refaire le monde
Good Bye Lenin!
2003 / Germany / 121 min / Color / 35mm
Director : Wolfgang Becker
Writer : Bernd Lichtenberg, Wolfgang Becker
Producer : Stefan Arndt
Cinematography : Martin Kukula
Music : Yann Tiersen
Cast : Daniel Brühl, Katrin Saß, Chulpan Khamatova, Maria Simon, Florian Lukas, Alexander Beyer, Burghart Klaussner
Subtitle : Yasuko Ishida
Distributor : Global Screen
The film is set in East Germany on the eve of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Christiane, the mother of Alex who works at a TV repair shop, has devoted her life to Socialism and has a strong sense of patriotism for East Germany. One night she witnesses her son participating in an anti-socialist protest and clashing with the police. She suffers a heart attack from the shock, which sends her into a coma. Eight months later she miraculously recovers from the coma. By then the Berlin Wall already fell down and Germany became unified. The doctor tells Alex that another strong shock may kill her. Alex decides to hide the fact about the fall of East Germany to protect his mother but…
The film does an excellent job of describing history from the viewpoint of the lives of ordinary people by putting a spotlight on each individual, who is affected by the significant changes taking place as a result of the fall of the Berlin Wall. It became a blockbuster hit in Germany.