In 1990, to protect his fragile mother from a fatal shock after a long coma, a young man (Daniel Bruhl) must keep her from learning that her beloved nation of East Germany as she knew it has disappeared.
While the humor of this film is the deception these people present for the benefit of one woman, it actually has a much deeper message than that. We see here the difficulty of switching systems, especially with such a messy bureaucracy. The mother may have a hard emotional switch, but everyone else has to make their own adjustments, sometimes with greater or lesser success.
I did appreciate using Burger King to represent the evils of capitalism ("monetary circulation"). I wonder if that is one of the few companies they received clearance for, because it certainly is not the first fast food chain I think of. I can see the Coca-Cola part, and very much appreciated the reference to that classic James Cagney film...
While the humor of this film is the deception these people present for the benefit of one woman, it actually has a much deeper message than that. We see here the difficulty of switching systems, especially with such a messy bureaucracy. The mother may have a hard emotional switch, but everyone else has to make their own adjustments, sometimes with greater or lesser success.
I did appreciate using Burger King to represent the evils of capitalism ("monetary circulation"). I wonder if that is one of the few companies they received clearance for, because it certainly is not the first fast food chain I think of. I can see the Coca-Cola part, and very much appreciated the reference to that classic James Cagney film...