The German film Goodbye, Leninwas a great success immediately after its release. At the same time, the audience also has a new understanding of the serious, deep, not strong entertainment German film. This film starts from the perspective of ordinary people's lives and combines personal life stories with national political events (Gao, 2014). This paper will analyze the demise of the GDR through the growth and change of individuals and families in the historical development of the society in the film.
The film also has a title called GDR Continues in 79 Square Meters. Alex was born into a happy family and a strong economy and culture in East Germany in the socialist camp. But when they were young, their father defected to West Germany, leaving them, their siblings and their mother, who was a staunch supporter of the GDR. Alex grew up, and his devout East German mother fainted eight months after seeing her son arrested during a demonstration. During the fainting of the mother, the Berlin Wall fell. Alex did not want his mother to be stimulated again, so the siblings decided to let the GDR continue in the mother's room.
The producer of the film once said: this is not only the history of East Germany, but also a tear-jerking story of a family (Gao, 2014). Alex, the main character of the film, tells the story of how his family has changed since the reunification of Germany and Germany in the form of self-narration at the beginning. By reflecting the history and politics of an era with small individuals in society, the audience can pay more attention to the influence of social changes on people's lives. It is not boring to tell the audience that this historical event is happening, but more vivid to trigger the audience's thinking. Secondly, the film also cleverly links the fate of the country with the fate of the family. The role of the mother is related in some way to the role of the mother in communist East Germany. Both are called "mothers", and they both suddenly become ill and eventually die. East Germany was symbolized by a fiercely socialist mother and West Germany by a defecting father. Because of the defection of his mother, Alex always thought of his father as a man who could turn his back on his country and his family. In his mind, his father represented a whole West German microcosm. Instead, the role of his mother in his upbringing became more important. So his love for his mother symbolized his love for the communist East Germany. In one of the most shocking scenes in the film, the mother who wakes up from a coma is already living in the GDR in the room her son has created for him. One day, while Alex was asleep, his mother, who had been bedridden for a long time, stepped onto the road. And a statue of Lenin, the symbol of a bulwark of socialist spirit, was hoisting from a helicopter over her head. The arm of the statue points to the front, and the camera turns to the confused face of his mother. This shot perfectly illustrates the confusion of the individual in front of the huge era. It also signifies the end of an era and the beginning of a new one. Until the day that Alex learned that his father was not the heartless man his mother had made up. Instead, his mother stopped contacting his father out of fear. The image of Alex, of the perfect mother, had collapsed, not only the image of the mother but also the image of the communist East Germany. Hatred and faith had no object in a moment. Eventually Alex reconciled with his father, not just in the father-son relationship, but also in ideology. Only after this did he really accept the fact of the reunification of East and West Germany. The fall of the GDR was actually the demise of the state as a political entity. On the other hand, the death of the mother represents the disappearance of the belief of an era (Yu & Li, 2015). Only the death of the spirit can make a nation truly destroyed. So Alex did his best to restore the old home of his mother. He made a number of short films to perfect the socialism he had woven, and he imagined the collapse of the GDR as a socialist reform that succeeded. He created a country that had never existed in this form (Uecke, 2007). This kind of behavior is not only a reflection of his love of his mother, but also a sense of “Ostalgie” from the Democratic Republic of Germany which means nostalgia for East Germany. The film shows in detail how Alex gradually accepted West Germany. Through his psychological change process, it reflects the psychological change process of the whole East Germans. The film ends on the anniversary of German reunification, with fireworks and people celebrating freedom, but no more of those who lost their jobs or lost their fortunes as a result of West Germany's overwhelming victory. For example, Alex's idol, a former astronaut, is now just a driver. The demise of the country made them helpless to say goodbye to the past and lose their original social status and identity. They are pushed by The Times and must adapt to the new life. The integration of the two different social systems is bound to bring some hardships. But the younger generation of East Germans must face reality and strive for the future. Alex and his girlfriend are sitting in a run-down house. At this time, they are located at the boundary between the past and the future. The empty space in front also symbolizes the free and hopeful future of this generation of East Germans (Gao, 2014).
The German people can always review their history with a calm and objective attitude. People are the subject of history, and this film takes an ordinary family into an era as the starting point. Combining personal experiences with the demise of a country, it vividly shows the changes in people's lives and psychology under the changing times. At the same time, it also shows the beautiful side of East Germany to the audience and leads the audience to think about East Germany. Farewell, Lenin, not just to Lenin, but to a whole era, a social system, a faith. But no matter how nostalgic the past may be. People need to look forward and be hopeful for the future.
Reference
Yu, B.,Li, KE. (2015). Appreciation of the film and television work Goodbye Lenin. Journal of Jiamusi Vocational College (03),22-23.
Uecker, M. (2007). Fractured families – united countries? Family, nostalgia and nation-building in Das Wunder von Bern and Goodbye Lenin!*New Cinemas: Journal of Contemporary Film Volume 5 Number 3 © 2007 Intellect Ltd. Article. English language. doi: 10.1386/ncin.5.3.189/1
Gao, XQ. (2013). Farewell, Lenin: Historical and Political Allegories Behind Coming of Age Stories.Film Literature (18),65-67.
