top 100 films of the 2000s: #7

7. The Lives of Others, 2006, Germany
Dir: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
Cast: Ulrich Muhe, Martina Gedeck

I remember the first time I heard about this movie, it was during the 2007 Academy Awards when they announced "The Lives of Others" had won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. My first reaction was, "huh?" Because, if you remember, that was the year of Pan's Labyrinth. I had already seen that movie by then and thought it was amazing (as you can see with its high placing on the list). So by the time I rented "The Lives of Others" on DVD, I was waiting to see just how this movie could've possibly beaten "Pan's Labyrinth" during the Oscars, a movie that seemed like such an easy shoo-in if I ever saw one. But then I actually saw "The Lives of Others."

By the time I finished watching this movie, I knew that I was in the presence of a true masterpiece. And I sat there on my bed, cause I watching it before I went to sleep, just in awe in what I just saw. With The Lives of Others, it doesn't immediately dazzle you with excellent visuals and creative visionary effects like with Pan's Labyrinth. The strength of Lives is its story and how it slowly and wonderfully unfolds. How we are introduced to this man, Gerd Wiesler, a member of the secret police of East Germany and the very subtle change of heart he has while he's assigned to monitor the life of playwright Georg Dreyman who is seemingly a genuine supporter of the Communist regime. Wiesler goes along with the monitoring of Dreyman until he realizes the real reason why his superior is insisting on Dreyman being monitored.

So, ultimately, Wiesler slowly becomes disillusioned with the hypocrisy and abuse of power that his superior is taking place in and he winds up taking a liking to Dreyman. So when Dreyman's begins to do things that would put him in serious danger with his government, Wiesler feels compelled to protect Dreyman and lie in his reports about what Dreyman is doing under his watch.

What follows in the movie is some of the most gratifying and wonderful moments in recent modern cinema. Wiesler's protection of Georg Dreyman and the lengths he goes through in order to save Dreyman from serious harm is just so inspiring and touching. Donnersmarck's debut film is masterful. The cinematography is appropriately bleak with shades of gray and green permeating the screen and it turns East Berlin into a rather dark and unwelcoming place. But within that place is a very moving story that puts humanity above government loyalty and it shows us just how bold someone like Wiesler is as he willingly invited a lesser life for himself just so Dreyman can live freely and comfortable.

The Lives of Others really is a remarkable achievement in film. I recommend it to everyone.