The devastation of World War One left Germany's budding film industry, like much of Europe, in tatters. But necessity being the mother of invention, German Expressionism was born. Relying heavily on symbolism and shadow rather than elaborate and costly sets, films like 'The Cabinet of Dr Caligari' are still studied by film students the world over. By the mid-1920s, the industry was getting back on its feet and great directors like Fritz Lang and FW Murnau were making their early masterpieces. However the onset of Nazism and the impending war led many of Germany's artists, including filmmakers, to flee to the U.S. Fritz Lang, Billy Wilder, Douglas Sirk, Karl Freund and many more all continued their careers in America while the German film industry virtually disappeared. It was not unitl the '60s and '70s that new talents emerged. Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Werner Herzog, Viktor Schlondorff and Wim Wenders revitalised German cinema and today international hits such as 'Run Lola Run' and 'Goodbye Lenin!' assure us it is here to stay. Right: 'Run Lola Run'
This trilogy of road movies from acclaimed German director Wim Wenders, starring Rudiger Vogler, form a commentary on the adoption of American culture... Read more
'The first time I saw the film I thought it was a knockout; on second viewing it already seemed a classic,' wrote J. Hoberman of Wim Wenders' re-exami... Read more
From the director of 'Run Lola Run', focusing on the lives of five people caught in a snowbound mountain town. "Disturbing, scary and erotic... Tom Ty... Read more
The tragedy of a simple soldier who is humiliated by everyone around him and is finally driven to murder; fashioned into a brilliant, compelling piece... Read more
During WWII, three musically gifted children - two Jewish siblings and a German friend - and their families, are torn apart as the Nazis invade Russia... Read more
Narrowly escaping her volatile ex-husband, Yella flees her small hometown in former East Germany for a new life in the West. She finds a promising job... Read more