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Max Mueller Bhavan | India

Wim Wenders – King of the Road – The India Tour

"In all my travels around the world over the years, it seems astonishing that somehow, India fell off the map, not just because it is a country with an abundance of landscapes and images to explore, but also because it is a country where cinema is like a religion. I have known of Film Heritage Foundation’s dedication to preserving, restoring and bringing India’s precious film heritage back to contemporary audiences, so I was very happy when Shivendra invited me to come to India for a retrospective of my films. I am excited to have the opportunity to travel across the country and present my films, and who knows what will emerge from my time on the road in India?" - Wim Wenders
Wim Wenders (born 1945 in Düsseldorf) became internationally known as one of the protagonists of the New German Cinema of the 1970s... more

Wim Wenders © Wim Wenders Stiftung, Photo: Donata Wenders

The India Tour

Cities and Schedule

February 5 – 9, 2025

Mumbai

Screening Venues: Regal Cinema / PVR Inox Metro for 3D screenings
 

February 10 – 11, 2025

Thiruvananthapuram

Screening Venues: Kairali Sree Nila Cinema Complex

February 16 – 19, 2025

Kolkata

Screening Venues: Nandan / Basusree
 

February 20 – 23, 2025

New Delhi

Screening Venues: PVR Plaza at Connaught Place for 3 D screenings / Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre

February 21 – 23, 2025

Pune

Screening Venue: National Film Archive of India (NFAI)

Tour Highlights

Retrospective

25 days | 18 films | 5 cities

The extensive India retrospective will showcase the auteur’s astonishing range of films spanning a career of more than half a century. A total of 18 of his films – features, short films and documentaries - from his earliest feature film, THE GOALIE’S ANXIETY AT THE PENALTY KICK (1971), to his latest documentary ANSELM in 3D will be screened in five cities - Mumbai, Thiruvananthapuram, Kolkata, Delhi and Pune - from February 5 to February 23, 2025. The screenings are open to the general public on a first come, first served basis.

The Goalie’s Anxiety at the Penalty Kick (1971)

Wim Wenders’ debut film – an existential crime noir inspired by the visual idiom of Hitchcock’s films. Winner of the FIPRESCI Prize at the 1972 Venice Film Festival.

Erika Pluhar in The Goalie’s Anxiety at the Penalty Kick by Wim Wenders © 1971 Produktion 1 im Filmverlag der Autoren | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1971 Produktion 1 im Filmverlag der Autoren | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Alice in the Cities (1974)

The first of Wenders’ Road Trilogy in which he discovered the genre of the road movie.

Scene from the film "Alice in the Cities". © Wim Wenders Stiftung © Wim Wenders Stiftung

Kings of the Road (1976)

The third film in Wenders’ Road Trilogy, “Kings of the Road” is about a friendship between two men: a film projector repairman who travels along the backroads of provincial West Germany near the border to the East in his truck, and a psychologist who is fleeing from his own past. Winner of  the FIPRESCI Prize at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival and the Golden Hugo as Best Film at the Chicago Film festival in 1976.

Rüdiger Vogler and Hanns Zischler in Kings of the Road by Wim Wenders © 1976 Wim Wenders Produktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1976 Wim Wenders Produktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

The American Friend (1977)

Wim Wenders’ adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel Ripley’s Game is considered a cult film. The cast of Wenders’ film includes not only the directors Dennis Hopper and Gérard Blain - many of the supporting roles of gangsters are also played by fellow directors, such as Hollywood legends Sam Fuller and Nicholas Ray. Winner of the German Critics Prize as well as winner of the German Film Prize in gold in two categories.

Film still from The American Friend by Wim Wenders © 1977 Road Movies | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1977 Road Movies | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Nick’s Film - Lightning Over Water (1980)

A film about the last months in the life of American director Nicholas Ray, who is probably best known for his cult film “Rebel Without a Cause”. Wenders and Ray got to know each other on the set of “The American Friend” and became friends. “Lightning Over Water” was made in just a few weeks at a time when Wenders was free from his studio film “Hammett”. Winner of the German Film Prize in Silver.

Nicholas Ray in Lightning Over Water by Wim Wenders © 1980 Road Movies | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1980 Road Movies | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Reverse Angle (1982)

“Reverse Angle” was my first diary film. It is about “new wave music” (among others Jim Jarmusch’s Del Byzanteens), about straying in New York, about the editing process of “Hammett” in the presence of Francis Ford Coppola, about a novel by Emanuel Bove and about Edward Hopper. And somehow the whole thing was a reflection about filmmaking in Europe and America.” (quote Wim Wenders)

Wim Wenders during the shooting of Reverse Angle by Wim Wenders © 1982 Wim Wenders | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1982 Wim Wenders | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Room 666 (1982)

“Room 666” at the Hotel Martinez in Cannes. There was a single camera in the room and the question was on the table. My colleagues only had to turn on the tape recorder and the camera when they were ready to give their solitary answers.  Godard, Fassbinder, Spielberg, Antonioni, Herzog and other filmmakers gave response to the question: ‘Is cinema a language about to get lost, an art about to die?’ “
(quote Wim Wenders)

Wim Wenders and Jean-Luc Godard during the shooting of Room 666 by Wim Wenders © 1982 Wim Wenders Produktion, Chris Sievernich Filmproduktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1982 Wim Wenders Produktion, Chris Sievernich Filmproduktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

The State of Things (1982)

"The State of Things" is a highly personal film about filmmaking in Europe and America. It is about a film crew stranded at the most Western tip of Europe. After shooting the last images of the film, there is nothing left to do but wait. The director finally sets out for Los Angeles to search for the missing producer. Wenders’ parable on filmmaking has also been interpreted as his way of addressing the difficulties that he faced during the production of “Hammett”, his first film in the US. Winner of the Golden Lion at the 1982 Venice Film Festival.

Isabelle Weingarten in The State of Things by Wim Wenders © 1982 Road Movies – Project Filmproduktion im Filmverlag der Autoren | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1982 Road Movies – Project Filmproduktion im Filmverlag der Autoren | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Paris, Texas (1984)

Wim Wenders’ iconic Cannes winner from 1984, exquisitely photographed by Dutch master Robby Müller, is a powerful statement on self-discovery, loss, redemption and the unbreakable bonds of love. Outstanding performances by Harry Dean Stanton and Nastassja Kinski, a masterful screenplay by Sam Shepard and Ry Cooder’s haunting soundtrack have contributed to “Paris, Texas’” cult film status and its spell, even 40 years later. Winner of the Palme D’Or at the Cannes Film Festival 1984 and the BAFTA Award for Best Director in 1985.

Scene from the film “Paris, Texas” © Wim Wenders Stiftung © Wim Wenders Stiftung

Tokyo-Ga (1985)

The documentary is the director’s homage to the great Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu as Wim Wenders travels to Japan in search of the Tokyo seen in Ozu’s films. Winner of the Outstanding Film of the Year Award at the 1985 London Film Festival.

Chishu Ryu in Tokyo-Ga by Wim Wenders © 1985 Wim Wenders Produktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1985 Wim Wenders Produktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Wings of Desire (1987)

The film has achieved cult status all around the world and marked Wenders’ “homecoming” as it was his first German film after eight years in America. The main characters are guardian angels – benevolent, invisible beings in trench coats – who listen to the thoughts of mortals and attempt to comfort them. Winner of the Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival 1987, as well as the German Film Prize in Gold and Best Film at the European Film Awards.

Scene from the film “Wings of Desire” © Wim Wenders Stiftung © Wim Wenders Stiftung

Until the End of the World – Director’s Cut (1994)

"Until the End of the World – Director’s Cut" is “the ultimate road movie,” a journey around the globe, a modern-day odyssey, and it certainly bears similarities to Homer’s saga. The film was shot in 1990 and takes place in what was then the near future, around the turn of the millennium. What most interests Wenders here is how humanity learns to deal with images - or becomes their victim. The character Eugene notes: “In the beginning was the word. What would happen if only the image remained in the end!?”

Solveig Dommartin and William Hurt in Until theEnd of the World - Director's Cut by WimWenders © 1994 Road Movies – Argos FilmsCourtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung – Argos Films © 1994 Road Movies – Argos FilmsCourtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung – Argos Films

The End of Violence (1997)

Wim Wenders’ webbed exploration of an image saturated Los Angeles is a thought­provoking analysis of human brutality. On entering this strangely meandering thriller, the viewer steps into a shady, multifaceted world, where the image does not act as evidence but instead leads one astray. “The End of Violence” is a cerebral and sobering examination of the all­consuming, dehumanising reign of images.

Bill Pullman and Andie MacDowell in The End of Violence by Wim Wenders © 1997 Ciby Pictures & Road Movies Filmproduktion | Courtesy of mk2 Films & Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1997 Ciby Pictures & Road Movies Filmproduktion | Courtesy of mk2 Films & Wim Wenders Stiftung

Buena Vista Social Club (1999)

The music documentary became a cinematic sensation and an international success and was nominated for an Oscar. With a small film crew, Wim Wenders accompanied his old friend Ry Cooder, who had previously written the music for “Paris, Texas” and “The End of Violence”, on a trip to Havana. Wenders immersed himself in the world of Cuban music. Over the course of several months, he observed and accompanied the musicians - first at home in Havana and then, weeks later, in April 1998, on their trip to Amsterdam for the first public performance of the band (who had never played together outside a studio) and then, in July 1998, to their triumphal concert in New York’s Carnegie Hall. Winner of the European Film Award as Best Documentary.

Wim Wenders and Compay Segundo during the shooting of Buena Vista Social Club by Wim Wenders © 1999 Road Movies | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1999 Road Movies | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

The Million Dollar Hotel (2000)

Based on an idea by rock star Bono of U2, the film is a story about friendship and deception - and about the immeasurable power of unconditional love.  A group of freaks, outsiders and drifters live in a run-down hotel in downtown Los Angeles, in an area full of drug addicts and homeless people. Bono provided the concept for the film as well as the soundtrack. Winner of the Jury Prize at the Berlin Film Festival 2000.

Milla Jovovich in The Million Dollar Hotel by Wim Wenders © 1999 Road Movies Filmproduktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 1999 Road Movies Filmproduktion | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Don’t Come Knocking (2005)

Hollywood star Howard Spence has seen better days. After another night of debauchery, he flees the set of his latest Western, riding away into the open prairie like one of the heroes he so often portrayed. He takes the bus to see (for the first time in 30 years) his elderly mother in Nevada and proceeds to look up a former lover in Montana and the grown-up son he's never met.

Sam Shepard in Don’t come Knocking by Wim Wenders © 2005 Reverse Angle Production, Reverse Angle International | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung © 2005 Reverse Angle Production, Reverse Angle International | Courtesy of Wim Wenders Stiftung

Pina (3D) (2011)

Oscar-nominated “Pina” is a feature-length dance film in 3D with the ensemble of the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, featuring the unique and inspiring art of the great German choreographer, who died in the summer of 2009. Wim Wenders takes the audience on a sensual, visually stunning journey of discovery into a new dimension: straight onto the stage with the legendary ensemble and follows the dancers out of the theatre into the city and the surrounding areas of Wuppertal – the place, which for 35 years was the home and centre for Pina Bausch’s creativity. Winner of the German Film Prize as Best Documentary, as well as by the European Film Academy as Best Documentary.

Scene from the film “Pina” © Wim Wenders Stiftung © Wim Wenders Stiftung

Anselm (3D) (2023)

In “Anselm”, Wim Wenders creates a portrait of Anselm Kiefer, one of the most innovative and important painters and sculptors of our time. Shot in 3D and 6K-resolution, the film presents a cinematic experience of the artist’s work which explores human existence and the cyclical nature of history, inspired by literature, poetry, philosophy, science, mythology and religion. For over two years, Wenders traced Kiefer’s path from his native Germany to his current home in France, connecting the stages of his life to the essential places of his career that spans more than five decades.

Anselm © 2023, Road Movies/ photograph by Ruben Wallach © 2023, Road Movies/ photograph by Ruben Wallach

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