3 Case study: Goodbye Lenin

Transcription

1 Section C New horizons Online chapter 3 Case study: Goodbye Lenin Country: Germany Production year: 2003 Director: Wolfgang Becker Certificate: 12A Main awards: Berlin International Film Festival, 2003 Blue Angel Directors Guild of Great Britain, 2004 César Awards, France, 2004 European Film Awards, 2003 Audience Award, European Film Award 1 Promotional poster for Goodbye Lenin In this case study we will cover: the themes and issues raised in Goodbye Lenin the ways in which people, places and events are represented the style and genre of the film possible creative responses. 1

2 Synopsis When Goodbye Lenin begins, 20-year-old Alex and his sister, Ariane, are living with their mother, Christiane, in an apartment block in East Berlin. It is 1989 and Berlin is in turmoil. Christiane has been a lifelong member of the communist party and when she sees Alex taking part in an anti-government demonstration she has a stroke and falls into a coma. During the eight months Christiane is unconscious, the Berlin Wall that had divided communist East Berlin from capitalist West Berlin is knocked down and both halves of Berlin become united once more. When Christiane wakes up, Alex and Ariane decide to keep the political events of the previous eight months a secret, fearing the shock may cause another stroke. It is this decision that creates the comedy as the family desperately try to explain and hide away the new westernised world of fast food, fashion and advertising by creating an increasingly fake world surrounding their sick mother s bed. Activity 1 AO3: Demonstrate planning, research and presentational skills In small groups find out what the Berlin Wall was, when it was built and when it was demolished. Introduction Berlin is the capital city of Germany. It had a turbulent history and became the focus of divisions within Germany itself after the Second World War. In 1961, the city was divided into two parts by a wall that became known as the Berlin Wall. This wall was seen to separate communist East Germany (the German Democratic Republic (GDR)) from capitalist West Germany (the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG)). Life for the Germans who lived in East Germany was very different from those who lived in the West. There were none of the trappings of western culture, for example, fast food chains like Burger King, furniture chains such as IKEA, or clothes stores like Marks and Spencer. Some families living in East Berlin became separated from close relatives, or friends, living only a short distance away in West Berlin, on the other side of the wall. The East German government (GDR) controlled people s lives much more rigidly than in the West and although many East Germans preferred the communist system, lots of others on both sides of the wall longed for a united Germany. Wolfgang Becker, the director of Goodbye Lenin, had close links with East Berlin. He was anxious to give audiences, who perhaps knew very little about Berlin s history, an insight into the differences between the two halves of this great city in the late 1980s. He decided to do this by focusing on one family, the Kerners, in his film. He does not give the audience an entirely positive representation of the West or an entirely negative view of the East. Instead he uses humour, mixed with some sadness, in order to explore what was lost and what was gained during the turbulent eight months when Christiane slept and the Berlin Wall was finally pulled down. 2

3 Activity 2 AO3: Demonstrate planning, research and presentational skills Find out as much as you can about the story of Rip Van Winkle. Who was he? What is his story? Several critics have called Christiane a German Rip Van Winkle. What does she have in common with this fairy tale character? Themes and issues 2 Themes and issues in Goodbye Lenin Truth and lies Hopes and dreams Political change Family relationships Old and new Activity 3 Watch the sequence which includes the family celebration of Christiane s birthday and ends just after Alex and his mother have watched the news together. (55.38 to ) How many lies are told during this sequence? What is the reaction of friends and family to the way in which one lie rapidly leads to the need for another? Is there a sense that Alex is becoming increasingly isolated from everyone else? How does Alex attempt to explain away the unfurling of the massive Coca-Cola logo from the multi-storey building during his birthday speech for his mother? How does he try to prove that he is telling Christiane the truth? Alex says in this sequence the truth is a dubious concept. What motivates his lies? Do you think they are justified? Are there times when lying can be morally justified? 3

4 Truth and lies Alex s lies become increasingly outrageous and so do the lengths he goes to in order to back them up. He uses actual footage of the Berlin Wall falling and people rushing into the West and twists the truth by creating a new commentary. This commentary explains that the footage shows people desperately rushing from the West in order to escape from their narrow, materialistic lives. Although we smile, he shows just how easy it is for us to believe what we are told, or shown, in the media. 3 Don t believe everything you see in the news! The deeper Alex gets into his fictional world, the more convinced his girlfriend, Lara, and sister Ariane are that he is doing the wrong thing. But Alex is not the only member of the family who has been bending the truth. Christiane has been living a lie for many years and it is not until almost the end of the film that the family are told that it is she who abandoned their father by refusing to join him in the West. He did not leave her for another woman or turn his back on his children. Family relationships When the film begins we see a close family made up of very different characters. As the narrative develops, relationships become more and more strained, mainly because of Alex s increasingly controlling behaviour. The deception that began for the best of reasons to protect Christiane is carried to ridiculous extremes affecting what Ariane does for a living, which nappies her baby wears and even who was responsible for inventing Coca-Cola! Yet in spite of all these lies, the strong bonds between mother and children remain. Love leads to forgiveness and the chance for a new beginning. Alex and Ariane forgive Christiane for her deception. It is also clear that Christiane initially suspects, and then finally learns about, Alex s lies. Certainly, when he walks into her hospital room after her second stroke it is clear that Lara has told her something of what is happening. Her final moments with him when she pretends to continue to believe his fantastical lies also underline the strength of their love. Hopes and dreams: dreaming of space The flashbacks to Alex s youth show his desperation to make the world right for his mother and to make her proud of him. He dreams of becoming East Germany s second man in space. He joins the Young Rocket Builders footage of his achievements is juxtaposed with footage of his mother and her achievements in the old East Berlin. His childhood anxieties are carried into adulthood as he battles to create the perfect world of his mother s dreams. 4

5 Activity 4 Watch the sequence which begins 3.37 (Chapter 1) and finishes What does the sequence tell you about Alex s relationship with his mother when he was young? What do you learn about his hopes for the future? Focus carefully on the mise-en-scène in the shots that mark the transition from Alex as a child to 10 YEARS LATER. What do these shots tell you about the difference between childhood dreams and adult reality for Alex? Think carefully about what you learn about the astronaut Sigmund Jahn in the new reunified Germany. Can you think of any connection between Jahn s fate and Alex s own experiences? Old and new As Alex, Ariane and Christiane look at Berlin through their apartment window, Alex says, The GDR I had created for her had increasingly become the one she had wished for. Alex and Christiane are very alike, both have big hopes and dreams. Each of them believes that these can be achieved by creating a fictional world. Each of them finally finds there is no such thing as a perfect world, but they do have the love and support of family and friends, and perhaps that is enough for anyone to hope for. Activity 5 Carry out some research on Lenin and who he was. Re-watch the sequence where Christiane walks outside for the first time. ( ) List the things that surround her that she would not have seen in the old East Berlin. The statue that floats through the air is of Lenin. Why do you think his statue is being taken away? How does Alex try to explain away what Christiane has seen? Political change Alex s search for the old foods, such as Spreewald pickles, has a clear narrative purpose. These foods were produced and sold in the old East Germany where often it was impossible to produce enough to meet demand. The director, Wolfgang Becker, juxtaposes shots which invite us to compare both systems of government. Alex threads his way through the old furniture which has been dumped out on the street in order to make way for the IKEA invasion. Coca-Cola banners hang from old apartment blocks. The supermarket shelves have been invaded by new brands from Holland and the rest of the world. 5

6 Activity 6 Watch the sequence which begins and ends How is the contrast between the shops in the old East Berlin and the new united Berlin underlined? What do you think the Giant Duck s purpose is in this sequence? The differences between the two halves of the city are highlighted by a montage sequence where we see in muted, washed out colours the empty shelves of old East Berlin supermarkets. A single, defrosting, bloody chicken lies at the bottom of a huge chest freezer; this shot is juxtaposed with the vibrant colours of the brightly packaged goods cramming the shelves of shops in the new westernised Berlin. These kinds of images, together with Alex s manic attempts to obtain pickles and other equally grim foods, make us smile. Each system is shown as lacking the emptiness and lack of choice in the East is contrasted with the overwhelming choice (the same products branded differently), excess and waste of the West. Key terms Satire: a method of highlighting human or individual faults or shortcomings by making them seem ridiculous (often used to attack something that the filmmaker disapproves of ) Tragicomedy: a film that combines aspects of tragedy and comedy Key terms Farce: a comedy which uses improbable situations, verbal humour and a plot where the action speeds up to a climax and resolution Running joke: an amusing situation or line that reappears throughout a film Irony: a device which highlights the difference between what is intended or said, and what actually happens Genre and style Although Goodbye Lenin deals with some serious themes and issues, Alex s attempts to recreate an East Berlin that has already vanished are comical. It is the way that these changes are highlighted as Alex tries to hide them that creates much of the humour in the film. Goodbye Lenin combines elements of satire with a central love story the story of Alex s love for his mother. It is the contrast between the serious political background and the emotional turmoil of the family s response to Christiane s life-threatening condition that makes this film a tragicomedy comedy which deals with tragically sad situations in a humorous way. The fact that we laugh at Alex and his desperate efforts to protect his mother from the real world does not mean we are not moved by her death, or affected by the strength of the mother son bond between the two central characters. There are references and in-jokes that only a German audience can understand; but equally there are others that make us smile, or even laugh out loud. Farce Alex s lies and pretence become more and more outrageous as the film continues and his actions become increasingly frenzied and bizarre. His improbable situation is made even funnier by the use of running jokes, for example, the recurring references to Spreewald pickles. The plot speeds up until it is finally resolved with Christiane s confession and last stroke. Throughout the film we are made to smile at situations that are quite sad. Without realising it Alex becomes more and more controlling of his friends, family and environment. He does, in fact, use the methods of the old communist state; the irony here is that Christiane s original stroke was brought on when she saw Alex protesting against the old regime. 6

7 As Christiane finds out more about the world she has woken up to, Alex is forced to resort to ever more complicated methods of covering up, or explaining away, what she has discovered. In order to do this he distorts and manipulates the media, and forces people to act against their real natures and principles using a mixture of bullying and emotional blackmail. He manipulates their loyalty to him and to his mother in order to control their actions. Goodbye Lenin is a farce based on dishonesty and as such could be seen to parallel the old regime in East Germany. Activity 7 Conventionally in a farce the main protagonist gets away with what he/she was trying to hide at all costs. Does this happen in Goodbye Lenin? Farce and satire often go hand in hand in this type of comedy. Can you pick out any incidents or ideas in the film that are satirical? The farce is often a very flexible genre and combines with other forms, including the romantic comedy. Which elements of the romantic comedy have you noticed in Goodbye Lenin? Certainly this film is not as heavy as it may seem at first. It is filled with many light comedic moments. There is the development of the relationship between Alex and Lara (his first love). Alex times his visits to see his mother in order to coincide with Lara s hospital shifts. They make love in an abandoned apartment formerly occupied by a government official. Their relationship is tender, loving, hopeful but even this is threatened by Alex s imaginary world. Christiane s death could be seen as sad but the final sequences are filled with hope: Alex s childhood dreams are rekindled, the family are reunited and the future is filled with promise. Representation 4 Christiane discovers the real world There are several interesting recurring motifs in Goodbye Lenin. The wonders of space and space travel are referred to repeatedly. We learn about Alex s childhood and his obsession with space travel early on in the film. When Christiane first ventures into the outside world after her stroke she sees Lenin drifting off into the sunset. As his statue passes in front of her, his hand at the front of the frame seems to beckon to her but she does not follow. For Christiane, coming out into the real world means letting go of the imaginary world that she has spent years inhabiting and facing up to the truth of her situation. Facing up to the fact that she had abandoned her husband and 7

8 that the ideals that helped her to justify the lies she told her children are no longer important, or valid. For Alex, this means facing up to the fact that a world that is built up of lies is bound to collapse sooner or later. Activity 8 Review the final sequence. Make a note of the number of times space travel is referred to. The film s director, Becker, uses archive footage to begin the film and the final sequence shows Alex and his family launching their homemade rocket containing Christiane s ashes into space. Why do you think he has chosen to open and close the film this way? Sigmund Jahn, the first East German in space and Alex s childhood hero, is shown driving a taxi in the new reunified Berlin. What do you think this might say about the differences between East and West Germany? Wolfgang Becker interweaves archive footage of real events into the narrative. These are really important. This technique encourages the audience to consistently remember that he is talking about real events. It also allows him to play with ideas about truth and lies. He demonstrates just how easy it is to manipulate footage of real events in order to create a particular kind of response. The fake Berlin Alex builds in order to protect his mother was, in many ways, the ideal Germany some may have dreamed of. Letting go of this amounted to letting go of former heroes. For Alex this meant Sigmund Jahn, for Christiane this meant Lenin. One drives away in a taxi cab, the other is removed from his plinth and transported through the air towards an unknown destination. Goodbye Lenin explores these issues while at the same time telling a story that is both funny and emotionally involving. Additional resources Goodbye Lenin Study Guide: Film Education Goodbye Lenin: Wikipedia Requiem for a Dream: Goodbye Lenin: 8