Films from Germany
The 57th Chicago International Film Festival will blow your mind, with its great locations, from movie theaters to drive-in, to your own screen at home.
Explore all of the films that this year’s festival has to offer, from thrilling dramas to outrageous comedies.
And, of course, there are many amazing German films.
A selection:
Fabian: Going to the Dogs (Fabian oder Der Gang vor die Hunde)
Germany • Director: Dominik Graf • 176m • German with subtitles
Berlin, 1931. Young and dynamic flâneur Jakob Fabian spends his days writing copy for
cigarette advertisements. At night, he hops from brothel to bar and back again with a rowdy cast of friends, artists, and colleagues—until a romance with aspiring actress Cornelia prompts him to reconsider the empty decadence of his hedonistic way of life. Evoking the Weimar era in blistering and
joyously frenetic style, director Dominik Graf adapts Erich Kästner’s novel into a sprawling, passionate love story set against the backdrop of societal freefall as the Nazi era looms on the horizon.
Available virtually: Oct 14-24 in the Midwestern United States
SAT 10/23 4:45 PM @ AMC River East
The Last Execution (Nahschuss)
Germany • Director: Franziska Stüenkel • 114m • German with subtitles
East Berlin, 1981. Tempted by the offer of a prestigious professorship, ambitious scientist Franz Walter (Lars Eidinger) is convinced to go to work for the GDR’s Stasi. Blackmail, coercion, surveillance, wiretapping–they all become part of his daily routine. As the consequences of these duties bear down on
him, Franz realizes he can’t, in good conscience, continue. But can one man stand up to a totalitarian system? Inspired by the true story of Werner Teske, this historical drama comes alive as a white-knuckle
political and psychological thriller and a searing indictment of an immoral authoritarian state.
Available virtually: Oct 14-24 in the Midwestern United States
SAT 10/16 8:45 PM THU 10/21 5:15 PM
@ AMC River East @ AMC River East
Great Freedom (Grosse Freiheit)
Austria / Germany • Director: Sebastian Meise • 116m • German with subtitles
In the aftermath of World War II, Holocaust survivor Hans (Franz Rogowski) is caught in a continuous cycle of incarceration as a result of paragraph 175, a law criminalizing homosexuality. Imprisoned once again, he
longs for a day when he can live and love openly and freely. Behind bars, he meets the surly, guarded Viktor, with whom he develops a deep, decades-spanning bond. Winner of the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize at this
year’s Cannes Film Festival, Great Freedom is a tender, lyrical meditation on the power of love, human connection, and their ability to transcend even the bleakest of circumstances.
WED 10/20 5:00 PM THU 10/21 8:30 PM
@ AMC River East @ AMC River East
Venues:
AMC River East 21
322 E Illinois St, Chicago, IL 60611
Gene Siskel Film Center
164 N State St, Chicago, IL 60601
Music Box Theatre
3733 N Southport Ave, Chicago, IL 60613
ChiTown Movies Drive-In
2343 S Throop St., Chicago, IL 60608
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