The Lives of Others

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The Lives of Others
(Das Leben der Anderen)
Directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
Produced by Max Wiedemann
Quirin Berg
Written by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
Starring Ulrich Mühe
Martina Gedeck
Sebastian Koch
Ulrich Tukur
Music by Gabriel Yared
Stephane Moucha
Cinematography Hagen Bogdanski
Editing by Patricia Rommel
Distributed by Sony Pictures Classics
Buena Vista International
Release date(s) Feb 9, 2007 (US)
Running time 137 min
Country Germany
Language German
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

The Lives of Others (German title: Das Leben der Anderen) is a German movie, which marks the feature film debut of director/screenwriter Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. It won seven Deutscher Filmpreis awards including best film, best director, best screenplay, best actor and best supporting actor, after having set a new record with 11 nominations.

The thriller/drama is about the cultural scene of East Berlin, riddled by secret agents of the Stasi. It stars Ulrich Mühe as Stasi agent Gerd Wiesler, Ulrich Tukur as his chief officer Anton Grubitz, Sebastian Koch as the playwright Georg Dreymann, and Martina Gedeck as his lover Christa-Maria Sieland.

The film was released in Germany on March 23, 2006. At the same time the screenplay was published by Suhrkamp Verlag.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

In post-war eastern Germany, Stasi Agent Gerd Wiesler is assigned to spy on playwriter Georg Dreymann, who is suspected of compromising security. As time goes on, Wiesler's empathy for the writer and his girlfriend grows; he begins to lie and protect Georg. In the latter part of the film, Wiesler removes evidence from Georg's apartment which stops him from being detained. Weisler's chief officer, Anton Grubitz, calls the operation off and ensures the end of Weisler's carreer. Wiesler is demoted to Department M. We follow him briefly through the following years; at the end of the film, Dreymann releases a book dedicated to "HGW XX/7" (Wiesler's Stasi codename).

[edit] Awards

[edit] Festival Screenings

[edit] Literature

  • Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck: Das Leben der anderen. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main 2006, ISBN 3-518-45786-1

[edit] External links

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