Berlin Blues (2003)

There are two different words in the German language that translate into the word "you" in English. One of them is a formal word, that is being used when you refer/talk to someone you don't know that well or as a form of respect. The other is being used by friends. The former mostly is connected to you referring to the other person as Mister (Lehmann). And this is where one of the jokes of the movie lies. The use of that word and something might be impossible to translate (I have no idea how one would try to).

That might have been a lengthy explanation to a simple joke, but hopefully it also made clear, how the humor of the movie works. And a former VJ (MTV) is in the center of it all. Watching him take his first steps into "major" acting and succeeding is more than satisfying.

Fmovies: I live in SO36 for over 20 years now, the film was shot here - so why not give it a try? Here is why: • no significant story. If you like to gossip and watch other peoples relationships this might be interesting. If you're into stories that exceed everyday life - look somewhere else. • SO36 in 1989 was different. Far better than the utterly and totally misconceived sham 'Sonnenallee', but if you seek for insight into the times of the Wende in Berlin SO36 (Sonnenallee: Berlin 44) - avoid these! In my opinion SO36 had been the choice of location for this film, cause SO36 still catches peoples imagination - and has been for a quite long time. This story does not require the Wende at all. •not convincingly made. Some of the dialogs are just so woody, so read out...

Anyway - I wasted two hours with this - don't do the same!

Character driven...the strength of this film is its lack of narrative drive...

...and the weakness of this film is its lack of narrative drive...

I'm all for films that break away from the conventions...but this one is...

The greasy haired Herr Lehmann does not engage me. Nor do his cronies. The film is like a stream of consciousness with no resolution. The 10p ending of the fall of the wall is? Like, Na...und? What does it have to do with anything??? Didn't enjoy it. Kinda interesting and kinda boring.

I love Berlin. I love Kreuzberg. It was nice to spend an hour or two in that lokal...but it would have been better spent with interesting people. A nerd and his nerdy friends didn't do it for me. I'd rather have followed Soda Pop (Fanta) Rainer's story.

Berlin Blues fmovies. The film opens with a great and also very funny scene. The drunken and tired Herr Lehmann walks down the streets to reach his apartment. Finally he sees himself confronted with an awful dog!

He grabs into his pockets and finds some booze. In the end both are more or less drunken, Lehmann and the dog.

Two police officers drive by and wonder about this strange event...

This film has everything you can laugh, cry or cheer about and in the end the Berlin Wall is teared down, too.

Go and see it.

I definitely recommend this one to people interested in German movies.

It is a very simple story of a waiter working in a 'beer pub', but nicely told and filled with warmth which the actors carry. Hard to imagine that Christian Ulmen used to be a MTV moderator before starting acting, and Detlev Buck is so great in this one!

Want to see a 'different' movie on West/East-Germany? Then, go try it! While you might not get anything of the power of 'La Vita E Bella' or 'Amores Perros', it is a nice little comedy and gives good insights on how people in the catering branche did work before the 'Mauerfall' (wall fell)..

feels a lot like going back deep into the late 80`s in Germany. Lot`s of beer, music and men`s talk. Great performance from Christian Ulmen aka Herr Lehmann in his first feature film.