The Lives of Others Review
By David Kempler
The Lives of the Caged Humans
From Germany comes "The Lives of Others" an examination of how the Stasi (not so secret German police) operated in East Germany in the years leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall. It is directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, a virtual unknown here in America.
While the "The Lives of Others" is ostensibly about the Stasi, it is told on a personal level with Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler (Ulrich Mühe) as the bookish-looking but cold-hearted Stasi spy assigned to uncover dirt on playwright/director Georg Dreyman (Sebastian Koch) of the German stage. Dreyman is accepted by the Stasi as someone who is sympathetic to their cause and truth be told he loves living in East Germany. Some of his friends, on the other hand, are not nearly as pleased at what they perceive to be a lack of creative freedom and oppression.
Wiesler infiltrates Dreyman's apartment and wires it so he can listen in to all that transpires. Dreyman's live-in girlfriend, the equally famous actress Christa-Maria Sieland (Martina Gedeck) is obviously in love with Dreyman but the audience is led to wonder just how strong she really is. Can she really be trusted?
"The Lives of Others" moves slowly, not quite at a snail's pace but not much quicker either. Nevertheless it never screeches to a halt and while it is a tad predictable it never falls over that line into a scenario where we know exactly what will transpire step by step. After viewing it you will most likely have a feeling of having witnessed solid but unspectacular filmmaking. A few tense moments, a few touching moments, all in all a satisfying time in a movie house. Nothing more than that. If "The Lives of Others" ever induces an American counterpart, Kevin Spacey would make a good Wiesler. He bears a slight physical resemblance and it is very easy to picture Spacey in a role such as this.
