Der Baader Meinhof Komplex

Baader-Meinhof Complex, The (Uli Edel, 2009)

THE SCOOP
Director: Uli Edel
Plot: A look at Germany's terrorist group, The Red Army Faction (RAF), which organized bombings, robberies, kidnappings and assassinations in the late 1960s and '70s.

Genre: Action/Biography/Crime/Drama/History
Awards: Nom. for 1 Oscar - best foreign language feature.
Runtime: 150min
Rating: M18 for violence and some mature content.

IN RETROSPECT
Germany’s official entry to the 2009 Oscars was rewarded with a place to compete for the Best Foreign Language Feature category which eventually went to Yojiro Takita’s Departures. Director Uli Edel’s cinematic recreation of the events that led to the establishment of the RAF in the late 60s and the inevitable capture of its key members is easily one of the best films of the year. Despite clocking at a lengthy 150 minutes, the film grips viewers from start to end, and is possibly the most immersive film experience from German cinema in recent years.

The Baader Meinhof Complex opens with a scene in a tranquil nudist beach and then a gathering of young adults at a party-like setting, introducing the characters that would become integral to a small, lethal group of revolutionaries. Baader is the leader of the cause which champions the right for citizens of the world to live freely without the presence of aggressor nations. One of the group’s priorities is to put pressure on the German government to influence or intervene with U.S’ unjustified military involvement in Vietnam. Meinhof is a lady journalist documenting the rise of these revolutionaries. She makes the life-changing decision to join them and be their voice.

Edel uses an intoxicating blend of real images and re-acted scenes that are brilliantly edited to give the film a fast-paced drive. The gritty realism is matched with unflinching violence as the Baader-Meinhof group escalates its brutality in response to an equally brutal German government crackdown on what the latter perceive are acts of terrorism. At its infancy, the group is against the killing of innocent civilians. But after the capture of the core members who are put in solitary confinement for years and in a maximum security prison thereafter, the second generation of RAF fighters employs terrorist tactics to force their government to release the captives who are reportedly ill-treated and left to die in vain.

The performances in the film are delivered with aplomb. These characters are intelligent, sensitive beings caught in a situation that slowly spirals out of control. They begin with the good will to support human rights and end up as victims of their cause. Who is to blame? Now that is tricky. The poster for the film questions: Are they revolutionaries or terrorists? Edel does not provide a clear-cut answer. This is why The Baader Meinhof Complex works so well as a film. The director paints these people in as neutral light as possible and he coerces us to make a choice. The Baader Meinhof Complex is a masterful film of debatable politics and emotional human drama, one that a young Oliver Stone would have been proud to make.

SCORE: 9/10
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Last updated: 2010-05-14 00:54:33 by eternality_tan

the Baader-Meinhof Complex

The Baader Meinhof Complex
Starring: Martina Gedeck, Moritz Bleibtreu, Johanna Wokalek, bruno Ganz,
Director: Uli Edel
Genre: Action, Drama
Rated: R

The story of the founders of the Red Army Faction (RAF) from their inception after a police shooting during a youth demonstration, through there incarceration and the events following the Hijacking of the Lufthansa Plane.

The Baader-Meinhof Complex is an eye opening film that covers over a decade of events following the founding members of the RAF. Starting with a public demonstration where police violence leads to the shooting of a demonstrator. Andreas Baader (Moritz Bleibtreu) and Gudrun Ensslin (Johanna Wokalek)form the RAF an Urban Guerilla Organization set up to free Germany from Fascism through their own violent demonstrations. When Baader is arrested after going underground it is Ulrike Meinhof (Martina Gedeck) who through her connections as a writer is able to put together a plan to free Baader; and thus becomes entrenched in the RAF for the better part of the 70’s

This is a very complex film that covers a decade’s worth of material and a vast cast of characters. We see how what the Baader-Meinhof group starts escalates into actions completely out of the founders control with second and third generation members performing acts of terrorism that would have never happened during the inception of the group. With the leaders locked up in prison and put into solitary confinement only able to utilize small coded messages to get there word out, the group takes on a life of its own.  What starts out as a few bombings moves on to Bank Robberies, Kidnapping, Murder and finally a full on plane Hijacking, with the motives of the group getting lost in midst of it all.

What truly sets Baader-Meinhof apart from other historical films is that it doesn’t pass judgment on either side but instead lays out the events that happened and allows the viewer to determine who was right and who was wrong which truly is a gray area. With excellent pacing a decade’s worth of events are covered in a brisk two and a half hours.

Having not been familiar with the events prior to viewing the film, it did something that most historical films do not, which is peak my interest and  make me want to learn more about the events covered. Baader-Meinhof is not a film it is an open window into a world I didn’t know existed with themes that are as relevant today as they were in the 70’s. The views expressed by the RAF towards Israel as well as America’s occupation in a foreign country could easily be placed in the current context of world events.

Dont get me wrong this isnt like watching a boring history book. There are  bombings, beatings, Shootouts, bank robberies  people getting shot in the face etc. there are plenty of thrills to go along with the history lesson on terrorism. However this is a movie that challenges the viewer to not only watch but to think as well, while the same time being very entertaining. I for one am glad that the Baader-Meinhof Complex has made its way to the US.

4 sniper kittens.

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