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German music
German movie soundtracks
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For books about German cinema, see our German
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Popular &
contemporary German music | German movie
soundtracks | East German
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German classical music | German
folk & traditional music | German
Christmas carols | Kinderlieder
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Head On / Gegen die Wand (2004)
| LISTEN
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Downfall / Der Untergang
| LISTEN
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The Edukators / Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei
(2004) | LISTEN
| DESCRIPTION: Featuring tracks from Franz Ferdinand,
Depeche Mode, Leonard Cohen and Radio 4, along with German music
such as Tocotronic and T. Raumschmiere, the soundtrack is an energetic
reflection of The Edukators film, dealing with teenage
rebellion and idealism in Germany. Directed and written by Hans
Weingartner, the film features Daniel Brühl (who starred
in 2002's Good Bye, Lenin!), the Evening Standard
said of The Edukators '[It is a] gripping confrontation
between a trio of disaffected youngsters and the fat-cat businessman
whom they kidnap' while The Independent declared it to
be "One of the Best Films at Cannes 2004'.
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Good Bye Lenin! (2003) | |
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| REVIEW: More somber and subdued than his usual
work, Yann Tiersen's score for Good Bye Lenin! makes the
perfect audio counterpart for the film's bittersweet but often
funny story, which revolves around a family living in Communist
Germany and is told from the viewpoint of the son, Alex. The family
undergoes a number of hardships, including the father's escape
to the West and the mother's subsequent breakdown. After she recovers,
she becomes a fanatic for the Communist regime, until she sees
the police beat up Alex at a pro-democracy rally. The shock gives
her a heart attack, after which she lapses into a coma; when she
revives, the Berlin Wall has fallen. A doctor warns Alex that
any more stress could kill her, so he and the rest of the family
pretend that they are still living under Communist rule. While
no score could convey all of that, Tiersen's music does reflect
the hesitancy and delicacy of the family's plight should their
illusion be broken, as well as the comedy and the drama that ensue
when it seems close to falling apart. Most of the score is dominated
by thoughtful, rippling pianos that conjure up rainy days, as
well as strings, woodwinds, and brass that add to the airs of
urgency and madcap humor that dominate the film and its music.
"Summer 78" introduces the score's main theme, a winding
melody that is as lovely as it is sad. The version of "Summer
78" that is graced by Claire Pichet's ice water-pure vocals,
"Watching Lara," "First Rendez-Vous," "Lara's
Castle," and "Good Bye Lenin" itself all return
to this theme in various ways, lending more warmth or more coolness
as necessary. "Dishes," on the other hand, is the first
of the sharply quirky, nearly chaotic pieces that inject some
humor into the score. "The Decant Session," "The
Deutsch Mark Is Coming," and "Preparations for the Last
TV Fake" follow suit, with the emphasis on brass and woodwinds
changing from track to track. Still other pieces, such as "Childhood
2," "Letters," and "Mother Will Die"
-- which uses shimmering vibes and excerpts of hushed dialogue
in a particularly striking way -- aim at a deeper level of memories
and sorrow; Tiersen's subtly but significantly shifting compositions
are almost always quite moving, and Good Bye Lenin! is no exception.
Despite being a rather lengthy score, some of the cues are so
short that it's a little difficult to enjoy them fully. This is
a minor complaint, though; Good Bye Lenin! is one of those
rare scores that is just as affecting and cohesive outside of
the movie theater as it is inside of it. ~ Review by Heather
Phares, All Music Guide
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The Miracle of Bern / Das Wunder von
Bern (2003)
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Nowhere in Africa / Nirgendwo in
Afrika (2001) | |
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Run Lola Run / Lola rennt (1998)
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LISTEN
| REVIEW: German film Run Lola Run has
been compared to a 70-minute rock video: nonstop action and music,
and (for better or worse) not a whole lot of plot. But the premise
works, as does the film's high-energy techno soundtrack. Most
of the tunes on this disc are credited to the trio of Tykwer/Klimek/Heil--the
threesome of film director Tom Tykwer, techno producer John Klimek,
and Rynhold Heil (best known as the producer of German pop import
99 Luftballons by Nena). Included are several remixes of
the movie's main themes, the bass-heavy "Rock Me" by
Pills, and "Wish," featuring the vocals of Franka Potente
(Lola herself). There are a ton of soundtracks that have employed
dance music, but few work as successfully as Run Lola Run.
There's a cohesiveness to this dark and furious mix of beats that
your typical compilation just can't muster. ~ Review by Jason
Verlinde
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The Princess and the Warrior / Der
Krieger und die Kaiserin (2001) | LISTEN
| REVIEW: The score/soundtrack for Tom Tykwer's
The Princess & the Warrior is just as good as any "chill-out"
themed compilation on the market, if not better, thanks to its
consistency, its impeccably composed and arranged material, and
the atmospheric alternate reality it creates. This is film music
that complements the film itself perfectly and successfully exists
apart from it; anyone who listens to the disc after viewing the
film will inevitably get tugged back into it, and anyone who has
not seen the film will undoubtedly feel as if they're being dropped
into a dreamlike story of complicated, doomed relationships. For
the film's music, Tykwer once again worked with Reinhold Heil
and Johnny Klimek, who as a unit produced everything in conjunction
with a number of collaborators. Dubbing themselves Pale 3, the
trio (who had previously worked together on Tykwer's Winter Sleepers
and Run Lola Run) enlisted a small roster of talented, accomplished
vocalists: Skin (ex-Skunk Anansie), Anita Lane, Alison Goldfrapp,
Louise Rhodes (Lamb), Beth Hirsch, the duo 12 Rounds, and actress/Run
Lola Run star Franka Potente, who plays the lead role in the film.
The first half of the disc is devoted to songs featuring the vocalists.
Each vocalist played an active role, writing lyrics that have
tie-ins to the story, contributing music, and ultimately chipping
in with performances that rate well with (and generally fit stylistically
alongside) their primary outlets. Atmospheric, hazy, and densely
layered, the Pale 3 productions fit somewhere within electronica
and ambient terrains with lively, intricate, subtle cores. The
instrumental material that follows the seven vocal numbers paces
within a similar realm, incorporating lush swathes of strings
and the singular "infinite guitar" work of Michael Brook.
Given Tykwer and company's production range and their knack for
finding ideal and enthusiastic people to work with, it wouldn't
be a surprise if his soundtracks begin to be anticipated as much
as the films they're accompanying. ~ Review by Andy Kellman,
All Music Guide
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Aimée & Jaguar (1999)
| LISTEN
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Beyond Silence / Jenseits der Stille
(1996) | LISTEN
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The Promise / Das Versprechen
(1995)
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[Not available in Canada and the UK]
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Maybe ... Maybe not / Der bewegte Mann (1994)
||
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[Note that though the list of song titles has
been translated into English, songs are in German. See the German
titles here.]
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Wings Of Desire / Der Himmel über Berlin
(1987) ||
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| REVIEW: A little bit of everything can be found
on this soundtrack to German director Wim Wenders's 1987 film:
theme music, songs from the film, and even some dialogue. It's
an eclectic mix, but it hangs together well, instantly evoking
the moody, somber texture of Wenders's remarkable story of an
angel's desire to once again become flesh and blood. Jürgen
Knieper's solemn, meditative string compositions dominate the
first half of the disc, interspersed with actor Bruno Ganz's reading
of the Rainer Maria Rilke poem "Lied Vom Kindsein (Song of
Childhood)"; it's a dramatic effect that works here almost
as well as it does onscreen over sweeping panoramas of a still-divided
Berlin. And even if you haven't seen the film, several songs featured
prominently in it make this soundtrack an essential listen--namely,
Nick Cave's relentlessly spooky "The Carny" and Crime
and the City Solution's brilliantly droopy "Six Bells Chime."
Elsewhere, we get full-length versions of songs heard only (tantalizingly!)
in the background in the film, including Tuxedomoon's très
européen "Some Guys" and Laurie Anderson's ethereal
"Angel Fragments." Wunderbar! ~ Review by Steve Landau
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Das Boot (1981) ||
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The Blue Angel / Der blaue Engel (Marlene
Dietrich) LISTEN
| REVIEW: The remastered CD treatment of the soundtrack
for Josef von Sternberg's 1930 classic Der Blaue Engel
(The Blue Angel), with Emil Jannings and Marlene Dietrich,
is reverently reissued without the disease of collector fetishism
as an end point. The sound has been dramatically improved from
any extant or early version; the 24-bit digital remaster contains
all of the nuances of Frederick Hollander's orchestra playing
the score, and captures Dietrich's plaintive voice faithfully,
without embellishment, or any noticeable loss in dynamic. Musically,
these are cabaret songs that play as significant part in the movie's
plot, in terms of establishing the dimension and depth of the
characters. As a listening experience, it is flawless, a beautiful
document of the time and place, which is performed and recorded
astonishingly well. This is an essential addition to any serious
classic film soundtrack library. ~ Review by Thom Jurek, All
Music Guide
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The Music from Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Films | LISTEN
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German Movies: The UFA Years
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If you're interested in cinema,
see our list of German films on DVD &
VHS
and our list of books on
German cinema.
Popular &
contemporary German music | German movie soundtracks |
East German music
German classical music |
German folk & traditional music
| German
Christmas carols | Kinderlieder
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books | German
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newspapers | German
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