Goodbye Lenin

I had heard good things about this rather different, and original German film. It is set over the days that the wall came down and the months that followed. Alex and Ariane's mother collapses with a heart attack and lies in a coma for eight months during theis period. She is a dedicated Socialist and upon her coming round, the doctors warned against any excitement. Thus, Alex and his sister decide to keep the latest developments from her and keep her in her old room in the dark with the help of rigged news broadcasts by Alex's would-be film director colleague and a taxi driving astronaut.

Of course, things don't run smoothly, and you have to suspend your disbelief just a little, but it is such a good tale set against a real life backdrop that you don't mind in the slightest. There are some funny moments and some sweet moments also.

8/10