The Lives of Others

I just saw the DVD of The Lives of Others, a German film that one a best picture Oscar for 2006. I had had it on my queue for a while but kept moving it down the list. When do you feel like watching a movie with subtitles about the East German Stasi (secret police)? It sounds dour and bland and how can you do a crossword and pay attention at the same time. I finally decided I was up for it and well, not right away, but I became riveted and especially interested in the lead character, Gerd Weisler, played by Ulrich Muehe. This pretty nondescript looking guy who seems steely and calculating at first and, while never changing his demeanor, softens. Plus, the plot is intense and keeps you wondering what will happen next. I saw another movie about East Germany called Goodbye, Lenin which was more of a comedy but gave you an idea about what it must have been like to live during the time before the wall fell -- worth watching by the way. The Lives of Others, however, really made you feel what it was like to lose one privacy and to lose all hope in a future.