From the producer of Downfall comes an explosive film about the most notorious terrorist group of our time. Germany in the 1970s: Murderous bomb attacks, the threat of terrorism and the fear of the enemy inside are rocking the very foundations of the still fragile German democracy. The radicalized children of the Nazi generation lead by Andreas Baader (Moritz Bleibtreu), Ulrike Meinhof (Martina Gedeck) and Gudrun Ensslin (Johanna Wokalek) are fighting a violent war against what they perceive as the new face of fascism: American imperialism supported by the German establishment. Their aim is to create a more human society but by employing inhuman means they not only spread terror and bloodshed, they also lose their own humanity.
Film Crew
- : Uli Edel
- : Bernd Eichinger
- : Tomas Gabriss
- : Manuel Cuotemoc Malle
- : Peter Hinderthür
- : Rainer Klausmann
- : Alexander Berner
- : Johannes Wild
- : Birgit Missal
Technical Information
- Color
- German
Images
Videos
Trailer
Murderous bomb attacks, the threat of terrorism and the fear of the enemy inside are rocking the very foundations of the still fragile German democracy.-
At the very beginning, after it is agreed that no guns will be used in a bank robbery, one conspirator brings one and kills someone, and after that murder becomes part of the Baader-Meinhof charter. I submit that it is insane to judge an ordinary citizen as directly responsible for the activities of his government. Yes, we all "share some blame" for what our nations do, but to set off a bomb is to execute a random passerby. That is the evil of terrorism in general, although of course in the classic theory of anarchism, it is theoretically justified. I understand anarchy expressed in art, literature or film that seeks the downfall of an establishment. But to take a price in blood? You must be very full of yourself.The film meanders but finds focus again toward the end, after the gang's first members are rounded up and held in prison. They go on a hunger strike, are forcibly fed, find the means to commit suicide. Exactly how and why -- and even if -- some of them take this action is left in some doubt. No doubt it was the same in life. The film would have benefitted by being less encompassing and focusing on a more limited number of emblematic characters -- Meinhof and Herold, for starters.
Roger Ebert, The Chicago Sun Times
