Film Archive

Berlin Blues (Herr Lehmann)

It’s West Berlin in 1989, shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall. The Kreuzberg district is known for its beer-drinking freaks and self-styled artists; it’s a magnet for every social misfit that refuses or is simply unable to cope with the real world. Prominent in the group is Frank, with playful respect called Mr. Lehmann. When he’s not tending bar himself, Frank is getting smashed at another bar where his best friend Karl works. It’s there that he meets Katrin, who quickly becomes the focus of his love, sex and marriage fantasies. To help his buddy, Karl arranges a romantic evening... for three... which doesn’t go over too well. It’s only when Karl leaves the picture that the rest of the night greatly improves for Frank and Katrin... with Frank left believing that his fantasy of love and kids is well underway. When he arrives too late for their next date, however, Katrin meets and falls in love with another man and Frank’s fantasy of their life together explodes.

With his small world crumbling around him, Frank turns 30. On this day the Berlin Wall also crumbles, and as he joins the influx of ecstatic humanity pouring through a lifted concrete barrier, he is inspired. Not only his world but also the entire world has suddenly been changed. It is an end of an era for both...

Leander Haussmann was born in Quedlinburg in 1959. After attending the Ernst Busch Acting Academy in Berlin, he acted in the theater for several years before becoming a director. He was the artistic director of Bochum's Schauspielhaus from 1995-2000, during which time he appeared in Detlev Buck's film Jailbirds. His big breakthrough as a film director came with Sun Alley (Sonnenallee, 2000), followed by Berlin Blues (Herr Lehmann, 2003), NVA (2005), Kabale und Liebe (TV, 2005), Warum Maenner nicht zuhoeren und Frauen schlecht einparken (2007), and Robert Zimmermann Is Tangled Up In Love (Robert Zimmermann wundert sich ueber die Liebe, 2008).
 

Genre Comedy
Category Feature Film Cinema
Year of Production 2003
Director Leander Haussmann
Screenplay Sven Regener
Director of Photography Frank Griebe
Editor Peter R. Adam
Producer Claus Boje
Production Company Boje Buck Produktion/Berlin
Principal Cast Christian Ulmen, Katja Danowski, Detlev Buck, Janek Rieke, Uwe-Dag Berlin, Hartmut Lange, Martin Olbertz
Length 115 min, 3,220 m
Format 35 mm, color, cs
Original Version German
Sound Technology Dolby SRD
Festival Screenings Berlin 2004 (German Cinema), New Directors - New Films/New York 2004, Hong Kong (2004), Sevilla 2004
Awards Bavarian Film Award 2004 for Best Actor, German Film Awards 2004 for Best Supporting Actor & Best Screenplay
With backing from German Federal Film Board (FFA), BKM, Filmstiftung NRW
German Distributor Delphi Filmverleih/Berlin

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