Good Bye Lenin!

R

Released Feb 9, 2003

2h 1m

Comedy

Drama

List

91%

110 Reviews

Tomatometer

92%

50,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

In October 1989, right before the fall of the Berlin Wall, Alex Kerner (Daniel Brühl) is living with his mom, Christiane (Kathrin Sass), and sister, Ariane (Maria Simon). But when the mother, a loyal party member, sees Alex participating in an anti-communist rally, she falls into a coma and misses the revolution. After she wakes, doctors say any jarring event could make her have a heart attack, meaning the family must go to great lengths to pretend communism still reigns in Berlin.

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Critics Consensus

Heartfelt and sly, Good Bye, Lenin! succeeds as a satire by foregrounding the personal before the political, yielding a charming comedy full of sociopolitical insight.

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Alexsander F

Um filme que eu gostei bastante e, sempre que eu lembro de um bom filme, eu lembro dele, mostra muito bem como era à vida na Berlim Oriental e à sua transição para o ocidente com a queda do muro de Berlim. Um longa histórico indispensável para quem quer entender melhor esse momento do nosso passado não muito remoto.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/17/24

Full Review

Kolja O

One of the best German movies I've seen. It has so many emotions and is just good.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/21/23

Full Review

Susan J

No film has touched me like this film. My favourite film of all time. I can even watch it in German (a language I don't understand) and it touches my soul. The love of a son for his mother.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/20/23

Full Review

Katherine C

A son does everything possible to keep his mother happy and protect her from what happened in Germany while she was in a coma for a long time. It can be challenging to understand if you're not familiar with the history of East and West Germany.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/12/23

Full Review

Wolfgang G

Good Bye, Lenin! ist eine Tragikomödie von Wolfgang Becker… Um seine labile Mutter nach einem langen Koma vor einem verhängnisvollen Schock zu bewahren, muss ein junger Mann im Jahr 1990 vor ihr verbergen, dass ihre geliebte DDR-Nation, wie sie sie kannte, verschwunden ist… Familien- und Zeitgeschichte verbindend, ja, aber der Zuschauer muss die Jahre der Wende miterlebt haben, um zu verstehen, welche Umbrüche "verschlafen wurden"... Ja, Good Bye, Lenin! ist ein Klassiker der deutschen Filmgeschichte und immer wieder sehenswert.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/13/23

Full Review

Dave S

While in a coma after suffering a heart attack, Christiane (Katrin Sass), a staunch supporter of the East German communist regime, misses the fall of the Berlin Wall and the arrival of capitalism in East Berlin. When she suddenly emerges from her coma, her son Alex (Daniel Bruhl) is forced to deceive her into believing that all is as it was before her illness in order to protect her from shock and a reoccurrence of her heart problems. While it sometimes plays like an extended sit-com and the ruse eventually feels like it's starting to wear thin, Wolfgang Becker's Good Bye, Lenin! is filled with light humor, poignant drama, and enough good intentions to keep things interesting, as implausible as it all may be.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

Full Review

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Wolfgang Becker

Director

Daniel Brühl

Alexander "Alex" Kerner

Maria Simon

Ariane Kerner

Chulpan Khamatova

Lara

Florian Lukas

Denis

Alexander Beyer

Rainer

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J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

German writer-director Wolfgang Becker creates an intriguing story of a family traumatized by politics, then lets it drift off into an elaborate sitcom-style hoax ...

Jun 29, 2022

Full Review

Kirk Honeycutt

Hollywood Reporter

Non-Germans will certainly get the essence of the humor but may find the movie long and repetitive.

Jul 21, 2004

Full Review

Eleanor Ringel Cater

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Charming and eventually poignant.

Rated: B-

May 13, 2004

Full Review

Alistair Lawrence

Common Sense Media

While the finale might be a bit neat and tidy for some, Good Bye Lenin! still manages to be a political comedy with a heart and a conscience.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 17, 2021

Full Review

Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

A film of great history, great poetry, and great power.

Rated: 3.5/4.0

Sep 9, 2020

Full Review

Deborah Hornblow

Hartford Courant

"Good bye, Lenin!'' is a wonder of a film with humor and heart and political savvy to spare. Don't miss it.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 2, 2018

Full Review

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Synopsis

In October 1989, right before the fall of the Berlin Wall, Alex Kerner (Daniel Brühl) is living with his mom, Christiane (Kathrin Sass), and sister, Ariane (Maria Simon). But when the mother, a loyal party member, sees Alex participating in an anti-communist rally, she falls into a coma and misses the revolution. After she wakes, doctors say any jarring event could make her have a heart attack, meaning the family must go to great lengths to pretend communism still reigns in Berlin.

Director: Wolfgang Becker
Screenwriter: Wolfgang Becker, Bernd Lichtenberg
Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Production Co: Westdeutscher Rundfunk, X-Filme Creative Pool
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: German
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 9, 2003, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 17, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $4.1M
Runtime: 2h 1m
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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