Lyrics
Oost-Berlijn, unter den Linden:
(East
Berlin, unter den Linden)
Er wandelen mensen langs vlaggen en vaandels.
Er wandelen mensen langs vlaggen en vaandels.
(People
are walking along flags and banners)
Waar Lenin en Marx nog steeds op een voetstuk staan.
Waar Lenin en Marx nog steeds op een voetstuk staan.
(Where
Lenin and Marx are still on a pedestal)
En iedereen werkt, hamers en sikkels,
En iedereen werkt, hamers en sikkels,
(And
everybody works, hammers and sickles)
Terwijl in parade-pas de wacht wordt gewisseld.
Terwijl in parade-pas de wacht wordt gewisseld.
(While
the changing of the guard is happenning)
40 Jaar socialisme er is in die tijd veel bereikt...
40 Jaar socialisme er is in die tijd veel bereikt...
(40 years of socialism, much has been accomplished in
all this time)
Maar wat is nou die heilstaat,
Maar wat is nou die heilstaat,
(But
what is this utopia)
Als er muren omheen staan?
Als er muren omheen staan?
(If it
is surrounded by walls)
Als je bang en voorzichtig met je mening moet omgaan?
Als je bang en voorzichtig met je mening moet omgaan?
(If
you have to handle your opinion with fear and care)
Ach, wat is nou die heilstaat, zeg mij wat is ie waard,
Ach, wat is nou die heilstaat, zeg mij wat is ie waard,
(What is this utopia, tell me how much it is worth)
Wanneer iemand die afwijkt voor gek wordt verklaard?
Wanneer iemand die afwijkt voor gek wordt verklaard?
(When someone who deviates is declared to be insane)
En alleen de vogels vliegen van Oost- naar West-Berlijn.
En alleen de vogels vliegen van Oost- naar West-Berlijn.
(And only the birds fly from East to West Berlin)
Worden niet teruggefloten, ook niet neergeschoten.
Worden niet teruggefloten, ook niet neergeschoten.
(They
don't get stopped, nor shot)
Over de muur, over het IJzeren Gordijn,
Over de muur, over het IJzeren Gordijn,
(Over
the wall, over the Iron Curtain)
Omdat ze soms in het westen soms ook in het oosten willen zijn.
Omdat ze soms in het westen soms ook in het oosten willen zijn.
(Because they sometimes want to be in the west and
sometimes in the east)
Omdat ze soms in het westen soms ook in het oosten willen zijn.
(Because they sometimes want to be in the west and sometimes in the east)
Omdat ze soms in het westen soms ook in het oosten willen zijn.
(Because they sometimes want to be in the west and sometimes in the east)
West-Berlijn: de Kurfurstendamm!
(West
Berlin: The Kurfurstendamm)
Er wandelen mensen langs porno en peepshow.
Er wandelen mensen langs porno en peepshow.
(People
are walking along porn and peepshows)
Waar Mercedes en Cola, nog steeds op een voetstuk staan.
Waar Mercedes en Cola, nog steeds op een voetstuk staan.
(Where
Mercedes and Cola are still on a pedestal
En de neonreclames, die glitterend lokken:
En de neonreclames, die glitterend lokken:
(And the neon sings, that lure glitteringly)
Kom dansen! Kom eten! Kom zuipen! Kom gokken!
Kom dansen! Kom eten! Kom zuipen! Kom gokken!
(Come
to dance! Come to eat! Come to booze! Come to gamble)
Dat is nou 40 jaar vrijheid, er is in die tijd veel bereikt...
(That is 40 years of freedom, much has been accomplished in all this time)
Dat is nou 40 jaar vrijheid, er is in die tijd veel bereikt...
(That is 40 years of freedom, much has been accomplished in all this time)
Maar wat is nou die vrijheid, zonder huis, zonder baan?
(But what is that freedom, without a house, without a
job)
Zoveel Turken in Kreutzberg die amper kunnen bestaan.
Zoveel Turken in Kreutzberg die amper kunnen bestaan.
(So
many Turks in Kreutzberg who can hardly exist)
Goed... je mag demonstreren, maar met je rug tegen de muur
Goed... je mag demonstreren, maar met je rug tegen de muur
(Ok,
you can protest, but with your back against the wall)
En alleen als je geld hebt, dan is de vrijheid niet duur.
En alleen als je geld hebt, dan is de vrijheid niet duur.
(And
only with money is the freedom not expensive)
En de vogels vliegen van West- naar Oost-Berlijn.
En de vogels vliegen van West- naar Oost-Berlijn.
(And the birds fly from West to East Berlin)
Worden niet teruggefloten, ook niet neergeschoten.
Worden niet teruggefloten, ook niet neergeschoten.
(They
don't get stopped, nor shot)
Over de muur, over het IJzeren Gordijn,
Over de muur, over het IJzeren Gordijn,
(Over
the wall, over the Iron Curtain)
Omdat ze soms in het westen soms ook in het oosten willen zijn.
Omdat ze soms in het westen soms ook in het oosten willen zijn.
(Because they sometimes want to be in the west and
sometimes in the east)
Omdat er brood ligt soms bij de Gedachtniskirche, soms op het Alexanderplein!
Omdat er brood ligt soms bij de Gedachtniskirche, soms op het Alexanderplein!
(Because
sometimes there is bread at the Gedachtniskirche and sometimes on
Alexanderplatz)
This song about the tragedy and absurdity of the Berlin Wall is justly this high on the list. It is one of the greatest Dutch songs. Its appurtenant movie deals with the same subject and is set in 1989, exactly forty years since the birth of West and East Germany
The Movie: Goodbye Lenin! (Wolfgang Becker, 2003)
It is October 1989 when Alex Kerner participates in what is supposed to be a peaceful demonstration against the East German government. Soon the police comes though, starting to beat up the demonstrators including Alex. This is accidentally seen by his mother who promptly gets a severe heart attack and ends up in a coma, only to wake up 8 months later. This is great news of course for Alex and his sister, but it's not like their mother is healthy. As the doctors say, any shock can kill her. That's kind of a problem, considering the events that transpired in Germany in November 1989. Even more so, because Mrs. Kerner was a proud member of the East German communist party, who very much believed in and cared about her nation and the system. So Alex and his sister have to find ways to convince their mother that everything is still the way it used to be. What follows is a great, gentle drama with some nice comic touches that is one of the best European movies of this century. It is about what the unification of Germany means for its people and how they deal with this after being separated for so long. But is also about perception and about family relations and many more things really. I have seen it three times now, and I think it only gets better.
No matter what you think of communism or capitalism, or West and East Germany, the facts remain that there were many East Germans who lived a decent life in their country. It's a fact that they weren't exactly free, but it's also a fact that many of them had jobs and could make a decent living. And when Germany reunited and became a free capitalist state, many people lost their jobs and couldn't make a decent living anymore. While this movie sees it as a good thing that East Germany ceased to exist, it also fully understands those East Germans who mourn for the loss of their nation. Especially those who are now considered useless and jobless. It also understands that the fall of East Germany meant that a whole generation of people had to change their whole way of living and thinking in the blink of an eye. That's not an easy thing to do, even if your life is better now. Only after watching this movie now, did I realize that Alex' charade isn't just meant for his mother. It is also meant for himself. Of course, he doesn't really believe in his charade. Nor does he believe that East Germany will ever come back, but his charade does help him cope with the new reality.
As I wrote earlier, even though the movie has sympathy for those who mourn East Germany it sees it's downfall as sad, but inevitable. It understands that a reason why many East Germans, like Mrs. Kerner, put up with their country, wasn't so much because of the situation the state was in. But because of the situation they believed their state could be in. As we learn late in the film, Mrs. Kerner wasn't naive. She knew her life was hindered by the fact that she lived in East Germany. She put up with it, partly out of fear. But also partly because she believed in the dream of a communist utopia. She believed that things were better now in West Germany, but she also sincerely believed that in an ideal situation life in East Germany would be better. It sis clear that this thinking has influenced her son. And that's what makes his charade so interesting. In trying to recreate East Germany for his mother he creates the utopian nation that never existed. And that now never will exist. This is a nation to which millions of West Germans flee to seek a better life. A nation that is the true inventor of Coca-Cola. And a nation in which Sigmund Jahn, the great, heroic astronaut, is now the president of the republic, not a fairly anonymous taxi driver.
Because of all this it is certainly possible to read the ending as cynical. Sure there is a party at the end due to the birthday of unified Germany. And Alex seems happy, but his actions seem to contradict this. He may believe that his life is better now Germany is unified. But he certainly seems/seemed to believe in the dream of a utopian East Germany in which life would/could be better than in West/unified Germany (that's a bit too many slashes in one sentence, but they were necessary). That dream is definitely dead now. And he realizes this. And there is for him no new dream to replace it. He does not seem to believe in a German capitalist utopia.
Lasrly, for me as a media student, it was certainly interesting to see that the movie had a pretty good understanding of the media and its products. It knows that the current media revolution, due to which more and more people are able to create their own content started in the 70's and 80's. Film equipment became cheaper and smaller, which meant that more and more people were able to make smaller, or larger films. Alex wouldn't have been able to so successfully con, without his friend Dennis, an amateur filmmaker. But the movie (consciously or unconsciously) makes a larger point with this. The development of film equipment is just another reason why the fall of East Germany was becoming more and more inevitable. If more and more people are able to make their own films and videos, that people are less and less dependent on content by authorities. People can create their own narratives more easily, their information will come from more and more sources, etc. This is of course deadly for a authoritative state like East Germany, that needs and wants to control the media as much as possible.
That doesn't mean though that the state doesn't have any control over the media anymore. This too is understood by the movie. The movie uses the example of the football world championship in 1990, taking place in Italy. As the qualifications for the tournament happened before the unification of Germany, it was now West Germany that was officially taking part in the tournament. The movie shows though that the media treated that team as if it represented whole Germany. And it presented each victory of that team as a victory for whole Germany. It also presented that team as underdogs to win it all. (Though of course, as we in The Netherlands know, Germany is never an underdog in football) That did not just create extra sympathy for the team and thus for whole Germany, it also meant that when (West?) Germany eventually did become world champion their victory could be seen as a metaphor for how the new German state could overcome all it's problems. Thus is should come as no surprise that the movie shows Alex and other former East Germans erupting with joy when the final ends.
No matter what you think of communism or capitalism, or West and East Germany, the facts remain that there were many East Germans who lived a decent life in their country. It's a fact that they weren't exactly free, but it's also a fact that many of them had jobs and could make a decent living. And when Germany reunited and became a free capitalist state, many people lost their jobs and couldn't make a decent living anymore. While this movie sees it as a good thing that East Germany ceased to exist, it also fully understands those East Germans who mourn for the loss of their nation. Especially those who are now considered useless and jobless. It also understands that the fall of East Germany meant that a whole generation of people had to change their whole way of living and thinking in the blink of an eye. That's not an easy thing to do, even if your life is better now. Only after watching this movie now, did I realize that Alex' charade isn't just meant for his mother. It is also meant for himself. Of course, he doesn't really believe in his charade. Nor does he believe that East Germany will ever come back, but his charade does help him cope with the new reality.
As I wrote earlier, even though the movie has sympathy for those who mourn East Germany it sees it's downfall as sad, but inevitable. It understands that a reason why many East Germans, like Mrs. Kerner, put up with their country, wasn't so much because of the situation the state was in. But because of the situation they believed their state could be in. As we learn late in the film, Mrs. Kerner wasn't naive. She knew her life was hindered by the fact that she lived in East Germany. She put up with it, partly out of fear. But also partly because she believed in the dream of a communist utopia. She believed that things were better now in West Germany, but she also sincerely believed that in an ideal situation life in East Germany would be better. It sis clear that this thinking has influenced her son. And that's what makes his charade so interesting. In trying to recreate East Germany for his mother he creates the utopian nation that never existed. And that now never will exist. This is a nation to which millions of West Germans flee to seek a better life. A nation that is the true inventor of Coca-Cola. And a nation in which Sigmund Jahn, the great, heroic astronaut, is now the president of the republic, not a fairly anonymous taxi driver.
Because of all this it is certainly possible to read the ending as cynical. Sure there is a party at the end due to the birthday of unified Germany. And Alex seems happy, but his actions seem to contradict this. He may believe that his life is better now Germany is unified. But he certainly seems/seemed to believe in the dream of a utopian East Germany in which life would/could be better than in West/unified Germany (that's a bit too many slashes in one sentence, but they were necessary). That dream is definitely dead now. And he realizes this. And there is for him no new dream to replace it. He does not seem to believe in a German capitalist utopia.
Lasrly, for me as a media student, it was certainly interesting to see that the movie had a pretty good understanding of the media and its products. It knows that the current media revolution, due to which more and more people are able to create their own content started in the 70's and 80's. Film equipment became cheaper and smaller, which meant that more and more people were able to make smaller, or larger films. Alex wouldn't have been able to so successfully con, without his friend Dennis, an amateur filmmaker. But the movie (consciously or unconsciously) makes a larger point with this. The development of film equipment is just another reason why the fall of East Germany was becoming more and more inevitable. If more and more people are able to make their own films and videos, that people are less and less dependent on content by authorities. People can create their own narratives more easily, their information will come from more and more sources, etc. This is of course deadly for a authoritative state like East Germany, that needs and wants to control the media as much as possible.
That doesn't mean though that the state doesn't have any control over the media anymore. This too is understood by the movie. The movie uses the example of the football world championship in 1990, taking place in Italy. As the qualifications for the tournament happened before the unification of Germany, it was now West Germany that was officially taking part in the tournament. The movie shows though that the media treated that team as if it represented whole Germany. And it presented each victory of that team as a victory for whole Germany. It also presented that team as underdogs to win it all. (Though of course, as we in The Netherlands know, Germany is never an underdog in football) That did not just create extra sympathy for the team and thus for whole Germany, it also meant that when (West?) Germany eventually did become world champion their victory could be seen as a metaphor for how the new German state could overcome all it's problems. Thus is should come as no surprise that the movie shows Alex and other former East Germans erupting with joy when the final ends.
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