Logan M
A masterpiece of German cinema, that makes driving through cities and eating meals just as gripping as an edge-of-your-seat thriller.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
03/12/23
Full Review
Shioka O
A beautiful road movie by young Wim Wenders. Start from America and end in his home in Germany. So he ultimately found himself in his origin after the journey with a girl.The pacing is slow not like Hollywood films, but good as it is. Classic of man and a child movie.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
12/04/22
Full Review
isla s
This film has quite a nostalgic feel as well as a somewhat surreal sense to it, or, perhaps more accurately, a quietly contemplative nomadic sense/aspect. Its very much a plodding plot but I enjoyed the general aimlessness it has regardless. Of course its not entirely aimless as such but it'd be fair to say that there isn't exactly a strong sense of being in a rush, perhaps not so much due to the plot as such but in terms of the light and floaty music played in the background and the frequent camera shots of the area their passing through, whether (usually) by train or car, both rural and suburban. I enjoyed the music scenes, with Philip (the main character) attending a rock and roll concert featuring Chuck Berry and other rock and roll songs played at other times.
I thought it was quite endearing how Philip and Alice slowly became closer, sharing a laugh or two between themselves. I found the very last scene of the film, with the two main characters peering out of train windows, really quite touching and symbolic (poignant even, perhaps). The fact that its shot (or should I say presented?) entirely in black and white, combined with the music played (in the background and foreground once or twice) gave it a really nostalgic and charming feel, that I enjoyed. Its a somewhat engrossing film and there were some instances of quite witty dialogue present in the subtitles (its primarily in German, for the most part, with some English audio at the start of the film). I found it a surprisingly memorable film and so I would happily recommend it to others, with the caveat that not everything is fully explained, plot wise. Indeed it does have a mildly, if anything intriguing, mysterious aspect to it but I'd say if you have a little bit of patience for it, its worth sticking with as its really quite a pleasant and thoughtful film, certainly by the end.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
To see this film for the first time in 2022 is to be amazed - and somewhat saddened - at the changes that have happened since 1974. Alice in the Cities could not be made now because search engines and mobile phones would solve its quest problems too quickly and because a film about an adult male and child relationship would reek of suspicion. But it is a beautiful film and the central relationship is so natural and well observed. The intellectual angst of the young man is tempered by the child's innocent and visceral response to life. As their winding journey together unspools, we see the man thaw, and set aside some of his fury at the commercialization of the world, in order to take care of another small being. America's destructive powers are only just becoming clear in 1974 and the film is a horrible prefiguring of what capitalism has done to us since, but primarily it is a film about a relationship, and a mutually beneficial one. Wim Wenders was young when he made it but it is a very well crafted, subtle and life-affirming work. The last shot is masterful.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/04/23
Full Review
dave s
Alice in the Cities, the first installment of Wim Wenders' Road Trilogy, stars Rudiger Volger as a German journalist traveling across America in search of both a story and some sort of meaning to his life. As he prepares to return to Europe, he is burdened with the responsibility of caring for a nine-year-old girl (Yella Rottlander) who has been abandoned by her mother on the eve of their return to Europe. Filled with a myriad of thought-provoking themes and some beautiful, albeit grainy, camerawork, the primary reason for watching Alice in the Cities is the stunning performance of Rottlander as Alice, a character imbued with remarkable depth thanks to the young actress' phenomenal skills.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
03/30/23
Full Review
andrey k
A good examination of the modern world through the lens of a forced relationships between a German photojournalist in his middle life crisis and a little girl whose mother abandoned her, with a moody soundtrack and documentary style photography.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
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