By the title it would be assumed that Summer in Berlin is light fare, and at times it is, but it also has something to say about the difficulties of relationships and the realities of life. Katrin is divorced, has a young son named Max and is trying to make her way in the world by finding a job. Her good friend Nike is single and works as a caregiver for the elderly. Their lives are far from ideal and that makes their friendship even more important to them. After the daily grind their sanctuary is the rooftop where they share a glass of wine, unwind and chat about whatever they feel like. However, after one especially long day Nike is not around when Katrin needs her. Their roof top oasis is rudely broken up and the fact is Nike now has a boyfriend, the gangly truck driver Ronald. This is an interesting turn of events since the main relationship that both these women really cherished is hurt, because of Nike’s desire for a boyfriend or at least intimacy. Here is the struggle that plagues everyone. There is a primal longing to be loved and accepted and sometimes that urge can become even more important than maintaining a strong friendship. If you give Ronald a quick going over, he really is not a desirable character to be in a relationship with. He can be friendly enough and he is willing to sleep with Nike but that’s about where his involvement stops. Even when he first meets her at the club Ronald does not really show any genuine interest or his only motive is self-gratification (Summer in Berlin). It’s as if he asked himself, what can she offer me? The answer was simple: Food, coffee, a bed, and superficial companionship. He was fine with that so he went along with it and was satisfied. Nike on the other hand is attempting to make something more out of their relationship. She desires something deeper and more genuine. It is only during a pit stop when she is accompanying Ronald on his route, that Nike finally sees his real side. The fact is, he is married and has children, but he told a little white lie to Nike before (Summer in Berlin). This situation brings to mind Katrin’s own failed marriage and whether or not it ended due to her husband sleeping around like Ronald. As far as career advancement goes Ronald is a Nobody who is simply excited to be shipping electronics instead of carpets soon. Despite these signs, Nike still stays with him. Finally, her relations get completely muddled when Ronald shows up at her empty apartment only to go down to wait at Katrin’s (Summer in Berlin). When Nike discovers this, she resentfully suspects that something is going on behind her back. Thus, a love triangle is created that never existed before and a man who is a tramp has gotten between two friends. Nike desired the same things that everyone else wants and it did not turn out in her favor. Ultimately, she wises up and renews the bonds that are truly important, with Katrin and Katrin’s heartbroken son Max.

            Fittingly Everyone Else is a film about a boyfriend who wants to be as happy as another couple and a girlfriend who does not want to be like everyone else. Whereas Nike’s relationship with Ronald seemed wrong from the beginning, the Chris and Gitti we grow accustomed to at the beginning of this film seem made for each other. Their relationship exudes intimacy, playfulness, and affection. They spend time in their beach attire soaking in the sun and they even have time for private inside jokes like the little ginger man “Schnappi.” In one sequence when they are sprawled out Gitti even puts eyeliner and makeup on a consenting Chris (Everyone Else). Interestingly enough, Chris has little interest in seeing his former schoolmate Hans and his partner Sana. At first it seems that it might be because he is annoying or a phony. That is far from the truth however as Hans turns out to be a genuine guy who is willing to poke fun at himself and he enjoy the company of others. His relationship with Sana is a mutual bond of love between people who are getting ready to have a child and continue a life together. They seem like an ideal mature couple and the type of couple Chris and Gitti might be a few years down the line. However, circumstances begin to change for the two vacationers. Their relationship begins to crumble slowly at first and it continues to unravel as they spend more time with Hans and Sana. It is almost as if Chris knew that this would happen if he was with Hans, because Chris realizes that he covets the type of life that Hans has. The reality is he is not quite as accomplished an architect. Furthermore, he and Gitti are nothing like the other couple and they probably never will be. Gitti for one wears her emotions on her sleeve, she is more of a clown, and she only wants his love. Chris on the contrary is often quiet and he has trouble reciprocating affection. He is the typical strong silent type who is content with books and not prone to share his feelings. This comes back to hurt them because he feels it is unnecessary to tell Gitti he loves her and he is more open about his vocation with Hans than with Gitti. Their evening exchanges over dinner become in some ways reminiscent of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. The conversations do not become shouting matches, but they are perhaps more realistic and in some ways more harmful. They quibble and then brush off their hurt feelings quickly only to move on without any acknowledgement that something is wrong. Thus, Chris and Gitti are not able talk through their relationship effectively and that’s where they fail. It worked initially, in the early stages, when it was all about intimacy, vacationing, and superficial laughs. But the reality of a full-fledged relationship seems unattainable for them and even by the end of the film it seems doubtful that they will get back together. Although they were initially in a better place than Nike and Ronald, they too fell apart, since they were not able to make anything substantial out of their relationship aside from the sex. So many people in our contemporary world desire to have deep, lasting relationships, because in many cases they have never been able to get past the surface level and they want more. In this way these two couples in Summer in Berlin and Everyone Else are perfectly imperfect examples of modern relationships. 

How do you compare an epic shot in Africa with a hard-edged character study about a piano teacher and her pupil? The truth is, Nowhere in Africa (2001) and Four Minutes (2005) are two very different films in terms of time frame, point of view, and even tone, however both of these pieces of contemporary German cinema take a look back at the nation’s heritage in one way or another. Ultimately, both movies are fine representations of German film, because it is often very difficult to push forward culturally unless you fully acknowledge what has occurred in the past. In the case of Nowhere in Africa it is a Jewish family moving to Kenya before the outbreak of World War II. Then in contrast, the other film takes place in the present, but relates to the past through flashbacks. Both prove to work well within the context of the film and the tone which is trying to be conveyed. Thus, these differences were good because they mean there was an individuality that was created by the directors and teams behind each respective film.

The Oscar-Winning Nowhere in Africa, directed by Caroline Link is a semi-biographical film based on the recollections of Stefanie Zweig who was transposed to Kenya as a young girl with her parents in the 1930s. This makes the film not just a historical drama, since it is specifically following the recollections of someone looking back on a period in their life. Although we can assume that the protagonist is indeed remembering her childhood, the story does take place entirely in the past. As an audience we see the contrast between the harsh and prejudiced Nazi society and the peaceful beauty that seems to radiate out of Africa. They are two very different landscapes that truly shaped Regina’s adolescent years. The cinematography used to depict Nazi Germany for instance develops a dark mood through the depiction of the frosty snow-covered streets. The assumption is that this is a country that is cold towards Jews and although Regina is not old enough to know it yet her life in Africa will be much more welcoming. When the Regina and her mother arrive where her father is, their little home is situated on the sunny savannah. This is a stark difference from the harsh winters of their native land. Perhaps more noticeable than the change of climate, is the change in people and with that the mood changes as well. The African natives are depicted as generally kind, playful, and welcoming. Jettel, who has preconceived notions of other individuals, is initially guarded and callous towards the natives, because she is used to a hierarchal and racialized society. Little Regina on the other hand has a genuine openness at her young age and she embraces the people including the faithful cook Owuor. As he sensibly notes near the beginning and as they part ways, “You are wise. You must show [others] the way” (Nowhere to Africa). Paradoxically, despite the advanced age and experience of her father and mother, it is Regina who truly understands this life. She is not bogged down by racial and ethnic barriers. The first time she actually recognizes what anti-Semitism is occurs when the Jews get singled out during the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer at the school (Nowhere in Africa). It is these types of experiences back in Europe which have undoubtedly hindered her parents’ immersion into the African culture. Her mother for one is barely able to integrate into this humble lifestyle until the very end of the story. Even though Regina’s father has embraced the land of Africa, he still has very much to learn about the culture. Together the two of them struggle through a marriage that is plagued by emotional highs and lows which creates turmoil between them. Their daughter is truly the one with the “eyes and heart” like the Africans and she is the one in harmony with this new world, because the Nazis are just a distant dream to her (Nowhere in Africa). In other words, the parents and their daughter simply have different ways of viewing the world and it in turn influences how they allow history to affect them.

The angst-filled Four Minutes directed by Chris Kraus is a very different creature than its contemporary Nowhere in Africa and it is a film that looks at German heritage through a different lens entirely. The most obvious deviation is that Four Minutes is not a recollection of former memories, it is a film in the here and now. Sometimes it becomes painfully clear that we are not in Kansas anymore, or rather the 1930s Africa of the previous film. There is obviously no longer a need to flee from Fascism, but as we already know there are other problems to deal with. Prisons are hell holes, sexual abuse is a prevalent issue, and the specter of the past still hangs over some. This last instance is the situation for an elderly piano teacher named Ms. Kruger, because she was once a nurse during the Nazi regime and her past forever haunts her. She takes on the delinquent Jenny as her pupil and they have a rocky relationship to say the least. Although Jenny is much younger, she has a personal history all her own with a father who abused her and a baby who died inside of her (Four Minutes). For both of them their past experiences have shaped who they are and as a result both have become isolated social outcasts, and in many ways they were made for each other. Ms. Kruger’s past comes back through flashbacks and mundane conversations. These memories seep through in bits and pieces of her playing the organ at a hospital, perhaps spending time with her lover, maybe getting interrogated by the SS, or walking through the rubble only to find her lover dead. At first these images are very disorienting because we are not given any voiceovers as cues. However, this strategy seems to work well in this film since it suggests that these memories can come unexpectedly when she is alone and even in fits of sleep. It even comes out when Mrs. Kruger talks to people like the prison warden who she likens to her “first warden,” the “SS-Sturmbannfuhrer” during the war (Four Minutes). This is a quite outrageous and unfair comparison, but her mind always reverts back to the earlier times. In this way Jenny is good for Traude causing her to face reality. In one scene a hurt Ms. Kruger discloses her story to Jenny and then cries out, “Why do you think I’ve stayed here for 60 years.” Jenny’s answer is near perfect. Instead of showing sympathy, in her typical insensitive style she replies, “You’re a perverted freak, madam” (Four Minutes). This is so callous to be sure and yet the relationship they form causes not only Ms. Kruger but also Jenny to leave the past behind them. They share their love for music and allow it to shine through all the pain that has occurred in their lives, even if it is only for four minutes. That was enough. They proved that out of the ashes and out of the hurt beauty can still rise.