Ballon

An enjoyable German thriller telling of a family's attempt to escape from east Germany via hot air balloon, no less. It's one of those true "stranger than fiction" tales that plays out in a surprisingly engrossing and suspenseful way. The action and scale are low key, but the ballooning scenes are handled adroitly and the scenes of the Stasi and their investigations keep the suspense going. Nothing to dislike about a well-made thriller that actually thrills.

One of the better movies I've seen lately is German suspense movie "Balloon". Although released in Germany in 2018, it was released more recently in the US. Directed by Michael Herbig, the editing and pacing are very good as is the excellent background music. Actress Caroline Schuch anchors as the mother "Doris" giving perhaps the most authentic performace, though all actors do well. The balloon scenes are technically done satisfactorily, though best is the torment and anguish the family feels from the regime fueling their desire. The atmosphere of dialog of control and subtle oppression is underscored. 8/10

Great Actors, thrilling action, phantastic film music. Director Michael Herbig finds the right tonality to tell this true story. Must See!

There isn't much bad to write about Ballon. I don't know what people could dislike about this movie. To me it was entertaining, with quite a lot of suspense once you're into the story, a good cast (even the kids), and it's all nicely shot. I understand everybody was suspicious of the Stasi at that time, your best friend could betray you, but in this case I think they exaggerated a bit in order to make it more suspensful. But the suspense was the good thing about the story, plus the fact that it's based on a true story which made it even more appealing. It's one of the better German movies I've seen lately, certainly worth a watch if you like escape movies.

Balloon is a solid and unpretentious movie built around a cat-and-mouse game between infamous Stasi and two families trying to escape East Germany in a home-made hot air balloon. If it weren't based on a true story it would be difficult to believe how much risk some people would be willing to take with the life of their families while their day to day lives weren't really threatened by the system as long as they played along. However, once their initial attempt for escape fails, they realized they were being chased by Stasi and became desperate to flee the country no matter how.

Balloon has an engaging story, good direction, decent acting performance and above-the-average entertainment value. The recreation of 70's East Germany is well-done and convincing. After the first failing attempt, the pace of the movie indeed sags a bit, especially with the Berlin scenes, but it quickly picks up with the tension and drama kept tight till the end. It's worth watching and highly recommended.