Discoveries from Germany World Cinema

Das Phantom der Oper was a 1916 silent film. The film, also known as Das Gespenst im Opernhaus, is notable for being the first film adaptation of the 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. The film is now believed to be a lost film. No copies, photographs or even a poster of the film remain. All that is known is that it was made in Germany in autumn 1915, directed by Ernst Matray, starring Nils Chrisander as the Phantom and Aud Egede-Nissen as Christine, and Raul played by director Ernst Matray.[1]

Mia, Keks and Ian are at a turning point in their lives, searching for happiness but not sure of what will happen if they actually find it. Over a long night in Berlin, their storylines weave into one another.

Anja Altmann disappears after a birthday party. When the police ask husband Thomas about her , family attorney and friend Lavinia Bertok manage to dispel any suspicions about him. But soon Thomas is arrested. While the Altmann family start hurling accusations and recriminations at each other, Anja allegedly surfaces in Spain, raising a strange suspicion against Lavinia.

At the behest of his father, the young Karl Valentin is to complete a carpentry apprenticeship. When the father gets into a financial mess by a strict creditor, the boy works with growing success as a comedian to support his parents financiall

During his work as chief reporter for DDC-TV, a German-speaking television station in the USA, Dennis Mascarenas has met some pretty strange people and gotten into quite a few hairy situations. But when he is asked to make a film about the Germans' relationship to the moon, it is the beginning of the craziest and most unbelievable assignment of his career. 'The Moon Conspiracy' is like a glimpse into Pandora's Box: it takes Dennis and his audience on a surreal journey into hidden universes, only to end up at the frozen bottom of the German soul.

Iris and Ariel are 17-year-old twins, who live with their mother and older sister in an old house in the middle of a rocky island covered with molluscs and birds. The teenagers have grown up isolated from the mainland, in a sibling relationship that surpasses the limits of normal intimacy. The abrupt absence of their mother deeply wounds the three siblings, and Iris, moved by a strong need of separating herself from her brother, decides to go alone to the city for the first time.

Confusion results when a young man walking through a park joins in a game of tennis.

Filmed for television, this production adapts Molière’s Dom Juan (or The Feast with the Statue), following the final days of the libertine Dom Juan Tenorio as he seduces, deceives, and provokes those around him. His servant Sganarelle serves as a constant companion and observer, accompanying Dom Juan toward the reckoning implied by the play’s statue motif.

A French Foreign Legion commander is told to assemble a unit and capture an Algerian rebel leader. He gathers in his old unit, most of whom are no longer in top form. One is having nightmares of past indiscretions, another is now drinking, another has lost his nerve. He takes them in captures the leader, but then is unable to make it to the pick up. He encounters a rebel patrol and is trapped unless they can escape before their water runs out.

It has been ten years since twelve-year-old Paula Wagner was the victim of a terrible crime - raped and murdered by her tennis teacher. Eleven years in which her parents Kai and Maria Wagner found it difficult to come to terms with what had happened.

Author Steffen Teuffel moved from Berlin to sleepy, 'dying' Brandenburg (ex-GDR) small-town Krummenwalde with his wife Beate, who runs the local beverage firm, and their kids: smart son Kai opted out of college and happily works in the only pub; his shallow sister Lisa lets a classmate obsess over losing her virginity to farm boys; kid sister Sophie attracts kids' attention by waving a gold coin she found diving into the town lake, until Lutheran vicar Juchem, who needs to pay for a new church roof, snaps it up and enlists Steffen's research skills plus knowledge of French to help him and bossy mayor Gerd Jänicke, who wants to revitalize the town, research the local archives concerning a legend about a Napoleonic regimental treasure being lost in that very lake the golden Napoléon came from and split it three ways.

Dr. Philipp Achtermann, a microbiologist from the GDR, was attending a conference in Frankfurt on business. On the return journey with his wife Nina, he allows himself a deviation from the prescribed route. On a side road near Lake Chiemsee, Achtermann's Wartburg collides with a West German BMW. At the wheel is Tom Maiwald, an architect.

Yacine is the veterinarian of the only zoo remaining in the Palestinian West Bank. He lives alone with his 10-year old son, Ziad. The kid has a special bond with the two giraffes in the zoo. He seems to be the only one to communicate with them. After an air raid in the region the male giraffe dies. His mate, Rita, won’t survive unless the veterinarian finds her a new companion. The only zoo that might provide this animal is located in Tel Aviv ...

1978. In a desperate act of love, a plane is hijacked in East Germany and forced to land in the American Sector of West Berlin, triggering a Cold War crisis and forcing 60 hapless passengers to decide in minutes whether to give up everything and stay in the West...

Young Roman and his mother Oksana leave Ukraine and go to Germany, where she works illegally while they both live with Gert, an old widower who tries to befriend Roman, who struggles for his mother's attention and sees Gert as a rival.

Klara and her father have been alone since her mother died. Her close friend Hans leaves for the military, and on returning as a fine young man, rushes to see Klara. As their families work to keep them apart, their love grows stronger and stronger.

An operetta with music by Johann Strauss II. However, he did not see the premiere. Wiener Blut is set at the time of the Congress of Vienna, 1814-1815, an international conference that sought to settle Europe after the upheavals of the Napoleonic Wars, and follows a traditional operetta plot full of mistaken identities. Count Balduin Zedlau, ambassador of the tiny court of Reuss-Schleiz-Greiz, is posted to Vienna. Count Zedlau is married but a real Don Juan always looking for a new encounter. Many of Strauss' compositions are used in the operetta although he did not specifically composed them for the operetta.

In a German town, teacher Irene leads an inconspicuous, boring, lonely life. One day, a man rings at her door and slips in. It's an armed convict from the prison next door, escaped with a leg wound. He now makes her a prisoner in her own home. Almost without a word, as if she secretly enjoys the excitement or just mesmerized, she obeys Vassily, every single command, even sexual services, submissively or after a symbolic struggle. Somehow that seems to change, but can force initiate love?

Bundeswehr soldier Klaus’ regiment is stationed in France, to take part in NATO maneuvers. The soldiers are ordered to be kind to the populace, since the West German High Command wishes the French to forget the atrocities that were committed during the Second World War. Klaus falls in love with Jeanne, the daughter of the local mayor. He discovers that his commanders intend to demolish the ruins of a local church, in which civilians were murdered by the German occupation forces at 1944. A local journalist who researches the event discovers that West German General Rucker ordered the massacre, but he is mysteriously murdered. Klaus defies his commanding officer Siebert, who instructs him to steal the documents indicting Rucker, and hands the evidence over to Jeanne.

During their investigation into a toxic waste scandal, Yousseff and Anne Marie Fuchs' client are found dead, and the two detectives find themselves in a life-threatening situation.

An insight view on the life of Udo Honig, successful football manager with a gambling addiction (similarities to a successful football manager in real life being purely coincidental).

Historical drama set during the reign of Philip II of Spain. The royal troops have taken up quarters in the village of Zalamea. Captain Don Alvaro is staying with the farmer Pedro Crespo. His daughter Isabel behaves very coldly and dismissively toward the captain, which irritates him. Finally, he takes her by force and humiliates her father. The captain is put on trial in the village. Pedro is appointed judge and, despite all the threats from General de Lope, sentences the captain to death. De Lope then wants to deny him his judicial authority. Surprisingly, King Philip II appears in the village and confirms the harsh sentence, but wants to pardon the offender. However, the sentence has already been carried out.

When the revolution in Nicaragua won its victory nearly 40 years ago, the world began to dream. A young generation was taking the reins in a country of grand utopias. From West Germany alone, 15,000 “brigadists” travelled to help rebuild the war-torn country: liberals, greens, unionists, social democrats, leftists and church representatives harvested coffee and cotton, built schools, kindergartens and hospital wards. No movement has mobilised so many people. What became of the hopes and dreams of the revolutionaries and their supporters?

In the space of a short 65 minutes, a woman enters the luxury apartment of a wealthy man with an eccentric fascination for the female form and is paid both for her sexual favors and for lying there naked and letting him examine the aesthetics of her body. For most of the hour, as the concise narration of Marguerite Duras' novel on eroticism and aesthetics fills the aural gaps, actress Marie Colbin's form fills the visual gaps. But unless viewers consider the feminine eyeball or microscopic views of skin exotic and worth lingering over, the eroticism lies more in the imagination than on the screen. In fact, the female body lying on the bed, taken away from the spirit that animates it, is really just a corpse -- raising the question, exactly what is the "malady of death?"

The inhibited, uptight Irene Wagner must take over running the seedy dance club the Green Cockatoo or lose her classic dance studio to creditors.

Tibere is a small-time hood who tries to get one of three airline hostesses to help him in his gold-smuggling operation in this light comedy. One woman is a snob, the second is adventurous, and Melanie is sentimental about love.

From prehistoric times to our technologically accelerated present, this exciting and entertaining journey through time explores the thousands of ways in which mankind has perceived, measured and passed time over the course of its history.

Four-part episodic film about the everyday lives of young people. The focus is on a café as a communication point for various cliques.

Germany in 1947. After the Second World War, revue stars Alice and Ellen meet up again with their husbands in Munich. The place where their dream career began. During a visit to their childhood home, the ladies reminisce and relive the exciting events.

World-renowned artist Sting performs in the beautiful surroundings of Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum amongst paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer and Judith Leyster, and reflects on the works of the old masters. The 17-time Grammy Award winning artist performs a unique concert amongst masterpieces in the Gallery of Honour. Playing a rare 17th century guitar, Sting, managed by Martin Kierszenbaum/Cherrytree Music Company, reveals his love for the Old Masters and revels in the power of books and reading, while performing in the museum’s spectacular library. Accompanied by his longtime guitarist Dominic Miller, Sting reflects on the musical’s origins, shares stories from throughout his career, and performs beloved songs spanning his illustrious catalogue, including classics from his celebrated band, The Police. For the occasion, Sting plays a unique 17th-century guitar - originally crafted for the court of Louis XIV, the Sun King - generously loaned to the museum.

Theatre of War is an essay on how to represent war, performed by former enemies. British and Argentinian veterans of the Falklands war come together to discuss, rehearse and re-enact their memories 35 years after the conflict.

Although the familiar sign "Today closed" hangs outside the Zur schönen Aussicht restaurant, it's not at all quiet inside. A letter from the travel agency causes a stir: A representative signs up to offer the beautiful view a package deal. Much to the chagrin of the landlady, as she has a house full of guests and is booked up for several years in advance. Nikolaus Plaschke in particular, a regular guest and silent admirer of the landlady, fears for his beloved vacation bed. So he devises bold plans to scare the travel agent away.

Kummerow - a small town somewhere in Germany. Young people are moving away, jobs are scarce. Oskar Kubiczek, mayor, pub owner and optimist, is fighting for his town and fighting for his wife. A Bavarian company wants to invest in the region and a consultant is supposed to be on his way. The stubborn people of Kummerow are unimpressed. Only Oskar's friend Niels Lause supports him - but also his wife Irmgard. Irmgard wants to leave home and Oskar so that she can finally practise her profession as a midwife again. In the end, Oskar succeeds in rousing the people of Kummerow from their lethargy and mobilizing all their strength for the upcoming rowing regatta. Kummerow has a chance again - and not just against the Zechin rowing club.

Grace Ravenglass is the owner of Luckenham House, an estate in the picturesque Hudson Valley near the metropolis of New York. Grace is just about to break up her marriage and has to come to terms with her husband Edward moving out to be with his younger lover when she meets Ellie Summers. The young artist earns her living with commissioned drawings of private houses. She also offers her services to Grace. As different as the women seem, they like each other straight away. Grace understands how Ellie feels, having been left pregnant by her boyfriend, and offers her a place to stay at Luckenham.

Three jailers, a wheelchaired man and a mentally handicapped girl climb a mountain in the alps along with their supervisors.

The students of a Vienna High School participate in the games of a newly formed student's soccer league. After winning their first game, all they can think of is sport; they are encouraged by their gym teacher and school director who feel it's good for the school and its prestige. Coming of age film

Claudia lives happily with her husband Jens and their two children Katja and Max in the small town of Barstedt. Her husband has his own small construction company and Claudia, as a housewife, has no financial worries - until she suddenly runs out of money at the bank and learns that the joint account has been blocked.

Erik, in love with Magda, the fiancée of Georg, his boss, secretly sends her roses every night.

In the Rhineland in the 1960s, Hans Gunter, a rather shy young man in his mid-twenties, is one of the top players in the country at Tipp-Kick— a tabletop soccer game. When one of the metal figure players accidentally falls into a bath of photo-chemicals, it comes to life as a blond young football star, creating havoc in the life of its owner.

Thirteen wealthy American daughters visiting Europe are secretly abducted in Berlin by a dubious guide and governess. Stenographer Eddie, who missed their arrival, discovers a plea for help from one girl and pursues the kidnappers across the countryside. After capture and escape, he ultimately tracks them down, rescues the young women, wins their gratitude, and secures his dream job as a reporter.

The everyday life of a married couple at a turning point: Lore wants a divorce—after almost 40 years of marriage.

They grew up in the land of dictators and surveillance, where images are censored, photos are burned, thoughts are discreet, and mouths are kept shut. They grew up in Syria.