German Video Highlights
German Films on DVD and Video
New and Classic German Cinema on DVD/Video
Note: Films currently available on DVD or video are linked below and can be purchased in the North American/NTSC format.
This award-winning documentary
on Leni Riefenstahl and her films
is in German and English.
Recent years have meant better times for German movies—in Germany, North America, and around the world. German audiences that previously shunned any production with a "Made in Germany" label have actually been going to see German movies!
This modern German cinematic trend probably started in 1985 with director Doris Dörrie's comedy Männer. "Men" was a huge hit with its story about an adman who becomes the roommate of the man with whom his wife has been having an affair. This and later comedies and other popular German films have actually made German movies "in" with German moviegoers. (But Hollywood still has 70-80 percent of the German film market.) Dörrie also had success with Keiner liebt mich (1994), Bin ich schön? (1998), and other films since then. Unfortunately, few of her films ever make it to video outside of the German market.
But several good recent German films have made it to the U.S. and Canada. Below you'll find links to Good Bye Lenin!, Mostly Martha, the Academy Award-winning Nowhere in Africa, and other German films that have been released on DVD since 2000.
Why German-learners should
switch from VHS to DVD!
Unfortunately for people outside of Europe, not all German films make an appearance on video in a subtitled or dubbed version. But the World Wide Web has made it possible to order German (PAL) videos that may never make it to video outside of German-speaking Europe. See our list of such sources below.
Directed by Sandra Nettelbeck,
the film 'Mostly Martha' (2003) is
one of Germany's recent exports.
The main drawback to ordering DVDs or videos from Germany is that you need a multisystem video recorder/player, because neither German DVDs nor VHS videos can be viewed on a regular North American player. But there are several solutions to avoid this problem, including the purchase of a multi-region DVD player (or PAL-capable VCR) at a reasonable price from several online sources. For the serious movie buff and/or German-learner, this is the best, if not the cheapest solution. But your computer may also be able to play German DVDs. We discuss all this in more detail in my article called "DVD Details." Also see our German Movie Guide for even more links to German films on DVD, current German movies running in German Europe, classic German films, reviews, film festivals, and more.
All of the DVDs and videos listed below are suitable for playing on a US or Canadian DVD player or VCR. Just click on any title to compare prices!
German Movies on DVD and Video
Selected German Films
In German with English subtitles
North American (NTSC/Region 1) video format
See our DVD and Video Sources page for ordering Region 2 DVDs or PAL videos.
Newer German DVD Releases
Good Bye Lenin! (2003, DVD)
This culture-shock comedic drama takes a look at life in East Germany before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Alex (Daniel Brühl) dreams of being an astronaut while his high-strung mother is a devoted member of the East German communist party.
Mostly Martha (2002, DVD)
German director Sandra Nettelbeck whips up a tasty entry in the burgeoning "love and food" romance genre/ MOSTLY MARTHA is the tragicomic tale of an uptight professional chef in Hamburg who finds her life turned upside down.
Nowhere in Africa (2003, DVD)
Fleeing Nazi Germany, many Jewish families found that a new life was as difficult as any hardship they had previously known. This German drama, based on a book by Stephanie Zweig, tells the true story of a German family coping with life in Africa.
Recommended DVDs & Videos in German
Beyond Silence (1997, DVD)
In this award-winning film a girl receives a clarinet from her aunt and becomes obsessed with it—leading to tensions with her deaf parents. Original German title: "Jenseits der Stille." German with English subtitles.
Das Boot - Director's Cut (1982, DVD)
The re-edited, remastered director's edition of the acclaimed World War II submarine epic by German director Wolfgang Petersen. A great film gets even better on the two-disc director's cut DVD!
The Harmonists (1997, DVD)
Originally entitled "Comedian Harmonists," this German film directed by Joseph Vilsmaier is based on the true story of a German acapella singing group of the 1930s, the creation of 27-year-old drama student Harry Frommermann. An inspiring tale featuring original recordings from the legendary vocalists. Winner of the 1998 Award for Outstanding Feature Film at the German Film Awards.
The Inheritors (1999, DVD)
This Austrian film ("Die Siebtelbauer") is an interesting tale of how a group of poor farmhands comes to inherit the property of a murdered farmer. Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky. In German with English subtitles.
Both the video and the
soundtrack album (seen here) from
"Run Lola Run" have been very popular.
Run Lola Run (1998, DVD)
The excellent DVD version of the film in German with (or without) English subtitles. Stars Franka Potente ("Bourne Identity") as the red-haired Lola dashing through the streets of Berlin to rescue boyfriend Manny (Moritz Bleibtreu). - See my review of 'Lola rennt' ("Run Lola Run").
Run Lola Run - CD Soundtrack
Enjoy the infectious, pounding techno music from the film.
What To Do in Case of Fire (2002, DVD)
In the 1980s, Tim (Til Schweiger), his girlfriend Flo, and their roommates Terror, Hotte, Nele, and Maik—collectively known as Group 36—live as anarchist punks in an abandoned West Berlin warehouse. Original title: "Was tun, wenn's brennt." Schweiger has also appeared in several Hollywood movies, including "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life" and the 1994 German comedy "Der bewegte Mann" ("Maybe... Maybe Not").
Wings of Desire (1988, DVD)
This Wim Wenders' classic is now on DVD! Angels in Berlin listen to the tortured thoughts of mortals and try to comfort them. Former angel Peter Falk, as himself, assists in the transformation by explaining the simple joys of a human experience. Also stars Bruno Ganz and Solveig Dommartin.
The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl (1993, DVD)
A fascinating look at the woman who went from movie starlet to Hitler's favorite director. She was an active still photographer up until her death in 2003 at age 100. English and German with English subtitles.
The Old Is New Again - German Cinema Classics
The Blue Angel (1930, DVD)
Marlene Dietrich's big breakthrough film was one of the first talkies ever made. Don't be fooled into getting one of the cheaper, inferior versions out there! This Kino Video two-disc DVD has both the German and the English versions of the film—in top audio and video quality.
Faust (1926, DVD)
A visually stunning adaptation of Goethe's magnum opus as directed by one of silent cinema's greatest masters, F. W. Murnau. Using ingenious special effects and a wide variety of baroque visual techniques, Murnau creates a shadowy medieval world where the occult mixes with the everyday in a beautiful cinematic alchemy.
German Horror Classics Box Set (1919-24, DVD)
Features NOSFERATU THE VAMPIRE, THE GOLEM, WAXWORKS, and THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI all packaged together in one sublimely horrific collector's box.
Videos in German Only - No subtitles, PAL format
German Video Sources
Links to online sources of videos in German - in both the PAL (German) and NTSC (North American) formats.
Videostore
More German video titles.
German Movie Guide
More links to German films on DVD, current German movies running in German Europe, classic German films, reviews, film festivals, and information about German film people and the German-Hollywood connection. Our main German movie resource page.
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