It’s no secret that Berlin is my favorite city. After all, I’ve written four Hannah Vogel novels set here. It captured my imagination when I was a teenager here in the 1980s, when the wall was still up, and it’s never let me go. Here’s a list of movies that show the city that inspires me.
1. Wings of Desire.
Aka Der Himmel Über Berlin (1987), directed by Wim Wenders and starring Bruno Ganz and Peter Falk. This takes you on a gorgeous aerial view of Berlin as you follow an angel who falls in love with a human and gives up his immortality for love. This one I watched when I’d moved back to the states and missed Berlin desperately.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ic8iGIdv80o
(I couldn’t find a clip that I could embed, so you’ll have to click here to watch it. Sorry!)
2. Berlin: Symphony of a City.
Directed by Walter Ruttman (1927). Warning: this one’s a silent film. It depicts scene after scene of Berlin in the 1920s. Fascinating and gorgeous. I watched this over and over when I wrote “A Trace of Smoke.” (this clips shows  the full movie)
3. Valkyrie.
Released in 2008 and directed by Bryan Singer and starring Tom Cruise and Bill Nighy because this is where Claus von Stauffenberg died after his involvement in the plot to assassinate Hitler was uncovered.
(sorry about the ad at the beginning. It doesn’t seem fair to make you watch and ad to see a movie ad)
4. The Lives of Others.
Released in 2006 and directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck and starring Ulrich MĂĽhe, Martina Gedeck, and Sebastian Koch (my actor pick for Boris in A TRACE OF SMOKE).
5. Conspiracy.
Wannsee is known inside of Berlin as a wonderful beach and place to take your kids in the summer. My high school prom was held on an island in the Wannsee. But outside of Berlin the name is forever linked with the Wannsee Conference—where Nazi leaders met to come up with the Final Solution to the Jewish Question and made plans that would result in the death of millions of Europe’s Jews.
Directed by Frank Pierson and starring Kenneth Branagh and Stanley Tucci and released in 2001.
6. Cabaret.
From 1972, directed by Bob Fosse and starring Liza Minelli and Michael York. This shows another world just before it would be systematically destroyed by the Nazis—Germany’s gays.
7. Rosenstrasse.
This tells the story of Jewish German men married to German women and what happened when they were rounded up for deportation. This one has subtitles, but is worth the extra reading.
8. Judgment at Nuremberg
The next film deals more with the aftermath,  (1961) directed by Stanley Kramer and starring Burt Lancaster, Spencer Tracy, and Berlin’s own daughter, Marlene Dietrich.
9. Olympia (1938, two parts)
The Nazi Olympics were covered in full in  this film directed by Leni Riefenstahl and starring the athletes (including Jesse Owens). If you want to see the whole Olympics, this is the film for you.
(the entire film, part 1)
10. The Jesse Owens Story
Who was the hero of the 1936 Olympics? Jesse Owens. I’m putting The Jesse Owens Story (1984) on my list, even though it’s mostly not set in Berlin. It was directed by Richard Iriving and stars Dorian Harewood. I might switch this out if I really love the upcoming “Jesse and Me.” I couldn’t find this on YouTube, but here’s a half hour documentary that also talks about the problems he faced as a black man after he returned:
(sorry about the ad at the beginning, and the last few minutes become and ad for Ohio State University)
This list was hard to make because there are simply so many cool movies set in Berlin (here’s a list of more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_set_in_Berlin).
I’m thinking another list of Top 10 Berlin Thrillers is in order soon!
What movies do you think should be added to this list? Pipe up in the comments below.
Follow
The Spy Who Came In From the Cold – Le Carre’s first hit and a great story about love and deceit and betrayal, all the things that made Berlin so memorable.
Agreed! That was originally on this list, but I moved it to a later post I’m going to do about Top 10 Thrillers Set in Berlin, where it will be more at home.
Downfall is definitely my favourite German/Berlin film
Hello Rebecca…. Very much enjoy your novels set in Berlin. I’ve even gotten a few others hooked on them as well. Two movies perhaps worth adding to your list — “One, Two, Three” — wonderful offbeat comedywith Cagney. The movie was being shot in Berlin as the Wall went up in Aug 1961. Ostalgie in full bloom in “Goodbye Lenin.” Also, the “Good German” with Clooney & Blanchett was atmospheric but uneven. My wife and I are also purchasing an apartment in Berlin — so perhaps will see you at the Konditorei. TschĂĽĂź!
I’m glad to hear that you enjoy the books and are passing them along! Thanks!
I love all those movies, and most of them will appear in a future blog post: Top 10 Thrillers Set in Berlin! Stay tuned!
Hello – What about “Shining Through,” starring Melanie Griffith and Michael Douglas? I’m not sure whether the movie was filmed in Berlin, but it’s one of my favorites. Lyn