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The Promise

Play trailer Poster for The Promise R 1995 1h 55m Drama Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
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67% Tomatometer 6 Reviews 76% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
In 1961, shortly after the Berlin Wall is built, young lovers Konrad (August Zirner) and Sophie (Meret Becker) attempt to flee East Germany for West, but only Sophie manages to escape. Now separated by political boundaries, the two spend the next three decades trying to reconnect, even as he becomes an astrophysicist and she a member of the fashion industry. They do arrange an encounter in Prague, where Sophie becomes pregnant, but fear of punishment surrounds them, despite their love.

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The Promise

Critics Reviews

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Dave White Movies.com Rated: 1.5/5 Apr 4, 2011 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews It becomes too fuzzy when it tries to explain in 115 minutes the history of modern Germany. Rated: C+ Mar 25, 2004 Full Review Leonard Klady Movie City News Rated: 3/5 Jul 18, 2003 Full Review Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat Spirituality & Practice Shattering film about loss. Aug 28, 2002 Full Review James Berardinelli ReelViews Director Margarethe von Trotta effortlessly weaves history and personal events into a tapestry full of emotion and irony. Rated: 3.5/4 Feb 13, 2001 Full Review Steve Rhodes Internet Reviews Although it has many a tragic scene, the ultimate message made me feel like I had just heard Beethoven's Ode to Joy being sung - very uplifting. Rated: 3.5/4 Feb 13, 2001 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member (** 1/2): Thumbs Down It starts out well enough, but I was left bored through most of the middle part of it. The cast is fine and story was interesting, it just seemed like the film should have been edited down more. A near-miss. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/18/23 Full Review Audience Member To be fair I don't remember this movie very well. I do remember it dragging on though and while the acting is actually quite good I just never really got a sense of the loss the principal characters are supposed to feel. A good but somewhat wasted effort. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Audience Member This is a decent film set against the time Germany was divided by the Wall, but the romance part of the story was just a little bit too overly sentimental for my tastes. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/09/23 Full Review Audience Member I was a bit disappointed by some of the parts left out of the plot (where did the French husband go again?), and the ending. Also, I felt that the actual Mauerfall, which is one of my favorite moments of German history, was not portrayed as well as in other films. I think one reason for this was the relative short timespan between the fall of the wall and the time it came out. For this reason, most Germans don't even know of the film. In fact, it's not even on the German Wikipedia, I'm writing a site for it right now. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member When I first saw it, I was so frustrated by the ending that I overlooked all the movie's really good points. But the more I think about it, the more I like it. It's definitely one of those movies that grows on you. I recommend it. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/23/23 Full Review Audience Member bo-ring... horrible movie. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/03/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Promise

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Cast & Crew

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Margarethe von Trotta

Director

Corinna Harfouch

Sophie

Meret Becker

Young Sophie

August Zirner

Konrad

Anian Zollner

Young Konrad

Jean-Yves Gaultier

Gerard
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The Promise

The Promise (1994) The Promise (1994) The Promise (1994) The Promise (1994) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis In 1961, shortly after the Berlin Wall is built, young lovers Konrad (August Zirner) and Sophie (Meret Becker) attempt to flee East Germany for West, but only Sophie manages to escape. Now separated by political boundaries, the two spend the next three decades trying to reconnect, even as he becomes an astrophysicist and she a member of the fashion industry. They do arrange an encounter in Prague, where Sophie becomes pregnant, but fear of punishment surrounds them, despite their love.
Director
Margarethe von Trotta
Producer
Eberhard Junkersdorf
Screenwriter
Peter Schneider, Margarethe von Trotta, Felice Laudadio
Distributor
Fine Line Features
Rating
R
Genre
Drama, Romance
Original Language
German
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 8, 1995, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 27, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$72.1K
Runtime
1h 55m
Sound Mix
Stereo, Surround
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