Falsche Bewegung

Many people spring to life when expressing their contempt for Wim Wenders' films, pushing themselves toward new heights of eloquence...and for that reason I usually keep my admiration for him to myself but this movie and the Goalie's Anxiety (not the easiest film to watch) really hit the nail on the head. Incredible portraits of people (in this case men) who have itches that they just can't scratch! In one scene the "hero" listens to the ex-Nazi make some crack about Jesse Owens getting the gold medal and he says,"..so you wouldn't have stood on the platform next to a black man?" and I thought, "I would give anything to see an American movie with a conversation as half as real as this!" You think Wenders is boring? Ok, fine, he's boring. But American movies are phony, like Mcdonald's french fries, they're treated with formaldahyde to maintain their "natural" color.

Time does not always work in favor of movies. The second film I saw in Wim Wenders' retrospective at the local cinematheque was' Wrong Move' (the original title in German is' Falsche Bewegung'), which belongs to the cycle of three 'road movies' created by the director at the beginning of his career in the 1970s. It's one of those cases where as a film lover you can recognize many of the cultural ideas and landmarks on which the film is based and you can identify signs of the director's subsequent evolution. However, there is a lack of vibration and even of a great deal of interest, since the problems of post-war Germany are largely out of date and the style of dialogues combining existentialism with Goethe's writing experiences does not resonate in any way for the viewers of today.

Those who read Goethe know that Wilhelm Meister is the hero one of his novels in which the hero, a young writer in the making, crosses the future of Germany from north to south on a journey of intellectual initiation and self-discovery, trying to find the literary and emotional resources necessary for his profession. The action is shifted to the Germany of the 1970s when young Wilhelm Meister receives as a present a similar journey from his mother. He gets on his way and meets some bizarre and especially alienated characters typical of a society that had not completely exited the post-war trauma. The accumulation of information and emotion is rendered in the film through a combination of slow action, dialogues that are actually more monologues, and off-screen text probably extracted from Goethe's book. It is a combination that may have worked and may have been really interesting in the movies of the '60s or '70s (used intensely by Antonioni for example) but which in this film has a dormant effect.

Yet, there are a few good reasons why this film deserves to be seen. First of all for the two formidable actresses that appear in the cast. For Nastassja Kinski , still at teenage age and before getting the name under which she became famous, it was the debut film. For Hanna Schygulla, at the peak of her beauty, it was probably the first important role. Both play splendidly in roles that fit them perfectly. The problem is that each of the actors seems to play their roles separately. There is a story in the film that includes an ambiguous romantic triangle, but it lacks any vibration, perhaps because of the wooden acting of the actor in the lead role (Rüdiger Vogler). The existentialist type of the characters has real motives in the history of Germany at that time, but for today's spectators, especially if they are not familiar with that history, their behavior is difficult to understand. The feeling of verbosity at certain moments is accentuated by the slow pace of action in the intermediate scenes. In the absence of many obsolete cultural and historical landmarks, 'Wrong Move' does not say much to the contemporary film viewers.

Wrong Move wasn't engaing enough for me to actually care about 4 people traveling, talking and wanting to kill each other. The cinematography is the only great thing that stands out, everything else doesn't really hold up well.

Wenders' road movies of the 70s have a charm that makes them accessible to many viewers, yet are often linked by the less accessible themes of alienation and detachment. It is an interesting dichotomy and one that comes to focus with this film.

Political and cultural pre-determinism are not as easily digested outside the German point of view in the 70s, yet it is a common theme amongst Wenders films as well as (arguably) Herzog & Fassbinder (New German cinema contemporaries) . One does not have to be a philosophy or poli-sci major to enjoy this film however. The fact that Wrong Move is freely based on Goethe's "Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship" is easily overlooked by the casual viewer - but if viewed as an allegorical narrative, like Goethe's work, parts of the film come together and make this obtuse, personal work by Wenders more interesting.

The characters Wilhelm (Rudiger Volger) meets during his trip represent ideological sensibilities of 70s Germany. Mignon played by the teen Nastassja Kinski represents the youth and future of Germany (mute, trusting yet undemanding). Laertes represents the idealism of old Germany, and considers himself a martyr for the Nazi cause. Wilhelm and Therese (Hanna Schygulla) are between these 2 and take action to liberate one from the other. All is told in an un-naturalistic style that only works in some cases. The long (almost single take) walk up the hillside by the river are a good example of where the film shines. The photography by Robby Müller is consistently excellent here.

It's a difficult film but rewarding to those who take time to understand it from it's original historical and ideological context. Worth seeing for the cinematography of Müller and the presence of Hanna Schygulla and Nastassja Kinski.

Wim Wenders and writer Peter Handke team up a decade before "Berurin Tenshi no Uta" Wings of desire (1987)(Ailes du desir) and 4 decades before The Beautiful Days of Aranjuez (2016) based on Peter's play in French to premiere at Cannes this month.

It is shorter and simpler than Wings of Desire and it feels as though the whole movie is almost one take, one moment, one long reflection on the same theme of loss and loneliness, perhaps longing and love. It is poetic and philosophical, but also human. It succeeds in asking tough questions and not given easy answers. It understands human complexity and perhaps perplexity facing an uncontrollable, sometimes unsatisfying life.

Momentary solace and camaraderie soon dissolves as things fall apart naturally, casually and necessarily. Much more down to Earth than somehow esoteric Wings of Desire and has a direct impact on the viewer even if often dark and detached beyond the light-hearted and hypnotic beginning.

A interesting find, and perhaps one of the best movies of 1975, winning 6 German Film Awards including a deserving best direction, best screenplay and best cinematography by Robby Müller who shines on various occasion and gives a cohesive visual feel. I will look up Alice in the Cities (1974) and Kings of the Road (1976) to see see if Wender achieved similar success. Let's hope Peter Handke again gives substance to Wim Wenders now that Wenders is tackling 3 fiction films in a row after dedicating a decade and a half to creating captivating documentaries starting with Oscar-nominated Buena Vista Social Club (1999) and even better recent offerings Pina (2011) and The Salt of the Earth (2014).