Birge Schade Movies
- 2001
Directed by Christopher Roth, this biopic chronicles the rise of '70s West German terrorist Andreas Baader from his beginnings as a small-time car thief to his stint as the leader of the Marxist revolutionary Red Army Faction. Baader opens in 1972, as an unexpected traffic stop signifies the end of the radical's (Frank Giering) efforts to return to a socialist society. A flashback brings the audience back to 1967, when Baader (Giering) helped firebomb a Frankfurt department store and fled to Paris. Though captured by local authorities, he managed to escape from a German prison with the help of fellow activist Ulrike Meinhof (Birge Schade). Following training at a terrorist camp in Jordan, Baader and his gang proceeded to initiate a slew of violent activity; bombings ensued in various newspaper buildings, American military bases, and German police stations at a disturbingly high rate between the summer of 1970 and their disbanding in mid '72. Baader also features Vadim Glowna, Laura Tonke, Birge Schade, Jana Pallaske, Michael Sideris, and Sebastian Weberstein. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frank Giering, Laura Tonke, (more)
- 1995
- R
In this frankly bizarre fantasy story based on a novel by Austrian writer Robert Schneider, Elias Johannes Alder (Andre Eisermann) is born into a filthy, poverty-stricken village in the alps; his mother doesn't much care for him, and he later discovers he's the bastard son of the town's clergyman. As his mother is giving birth to his sister Elsbeth, Elias has an epiphany that causes his hearing to become unusually keen and his eyes to change color. He suddenly develops a tremendous talent for music, quickly mastering the church organ and performing and writing music with remarkable skill and passion. Once Elsbeth grows to maturity, Elias becomes obsessed with his sister and longs to be her lover; however, she breaks his heart by instead marrying Peter (Ben Becker), an old friend who is deeply moved by Elias' music. Driven to despair, Elias decides to commit suicide, but in a truly novel manner -- by giving up sleep. Director Joseph Vilsmaier also served as cinematographer; Schneider wrote the screenplay from his own novel. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joseph Vilsmaier, André Eisermann, (more)
- 1991
- PG
- Add The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter to QueueAdd The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter to top of Queue
Following the surprisingly successful children's fantasy The Neverending Story (1984), this lesser sequel presents the further adventures of the young boy Bastian in the magical land of Fantasia. Bastian (Jonathan Brandis) returns to this kingdom of the imagination, reached through a magical antique book, to escape from his unpleasant life as a social outcast with a distant father. Unfortunately, things aren't so great in Fantasia either, which is under attack by the sorceress Xayide (Clarissa Burt), and Fantasia's young leader soon recruits Bastian to help win the battle for their world. Several memorable creatures return from the first film, including the Rock Biter and the Luck Dragon, and a number of other strange beasts make appearances along the way. However, the plot often relies on stale fairy-tale elements that make the sequel feel substantially less original than the fresh and unexpectedly charming original. However, enough children were entertained by the special effects and the simple story of good-versus-evil for a third installment, The Never Ending Story 3: Escape from Fantasia, to follow three years later. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jonathan Brandis, Kenny Morrison, (more)
- 1988
In 1984, Anna Wimschneider, a woman who had been a farmgirl in Bavaria during World War Two published an autobiography which focused on her life during that period, and it became a huge bestseller. Her story, Herbstmilch, is brought to the screen by her fellow Bavarian, director Joseph Vilsmaier. At the beginning of the story, Anna (Dana Vavrova) is the oldest daughter of a widowed farmer, and toils ceaselessly looking after her father and her many younger brothers. She abandons her dream of becoming a nurse when she falls in love with and marries her neighbor, Albert (Werner Stucker), who is also a farmer. Before she can get too used to things, her new husband is drafted, and she is left as the only completely able-bodied person on the farm, and must support not only her hostile mother-in-law, but a whole host of new aunts and uncles. Enduring even more incredible and backbreaking labor on this primitive farm than on her father's farm, and pregnant, somehow she survives. Both Anna and her beloved Albert appear in significant cameos in this film. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dana Vávrová, Werner Stocker, (more)
