Das fliegende Klassenzimmer

"Das fliegende klassenzimmer" ("The Flying Classroom") really caught the spirit of the book. If you think from the title it's only a kid's movie you're wrong. The story reaches all generations. Universal ideas like friendship and loyalty are some of the themes.

Finally a movie the whole family can watch without being afraid that there's something some kids shouldn't see.

Though it the main part plays in Leibzig the inside of the boarding school was filmed in the "Landesschule Pforta", a school which once was a monastery. The old bathroom they show is not in use anymore though... just as a secret way to get away from the teachers and visit people in other rooms...

The third display of Erich Kästner's classic "Das Fliegende Klassenzimmer" passes through some perceivable changes. The story adopts clever into the modern time era, still keeping the tragic elements of the divided Germany alive in the form of past memories. But, nevertheless it seems that the real punch-line of Kästners story was lost somewhere throughout the attempt to adjust the characters and main story to our time. The deep emotional fracture, and the virtue of the historical background story aren't quite noticeable. Both crucial elements of Kästners novel - not only the carefully designed historical ballast and action but also the in-tensed psychological element, that clearly incorporation of the partitioned boarding school in the characters of Bökh and Kreuzkamm, together loose their meaning and significance. Also, like with the most movies made by a novel/book, the complexity of the single characters develops only in limited directions.

On the other side, the persuasive performances by all the main actors, and the fact that across the movie all unnecessary clichés we used to see in such teenage movies do not appear, leads to a positive evaluation of this movie. It certainly is both delightful and interesting to see how Kästners story and imagination after decades have past, at least in some basic outlines

I went into this movie knowing it was good. But it was better! It is a movie for children as well as their parents.

Everything in it is brilliant. Let's start with the acting. Sebastian Koch as the Nichtraucher (non-smoker) and Ulrich Noethen as Iustus are perfect in their roles. Especially Sebastian Koch is very convincing. The child-actors do a very good job and the rest of the cast is also perfect, not to mention the very funny Piet Klocke as Professor Kreuzkamm.

The screenplay is very good, the writers succeeded in eliminating all clichés. They did not simply turn Erich Kästners bestseller into a very good movie, the matter was also updated to fit in our time. Germany's unification is now part of the storyline of two characters in the movie.

Camera and direction is above average and give the movie a good look.

I enjoyed the movie, and so will you. Go and see it.

I stumbled across this movie while browsing the on-demand video system on a Singapore Airlines flight between Newark NJ and Amsterdam.

Having no familiarity with the original storyline "The Flying Classroom", I was nonetheless delighted at the quality of the acting, and by even more, the attention to sheer detail in the way props, scenes, etc are presented. Part of this may be due to the fact that no American studio was involved - Constantin Film is a German/European studio, and as such the movie was not adulterated in the way a Disney/Universal children's movie would be.

Everything - including the catchy theme music (not to mention the few phrases of Christmas Oratorio we get to hear), the interaction of the young actors and actresses, the subtle use of Mercedes-Benz vehicles, and even the underlying storyline has a very Germanic/European feel to it. And that's no joke either. Beautiful scene of Leipzig in the winter too. Wonderful, simply wonderful.

I plan on getting this one on DVD (to play on my multiregion DVD player) when it comesout.

The last time I watched this movie, I visited a cinema with my parents. Shortly after the release in 2003! A lot of scenes were burnt into my mind, together with this fantastic soundtrack from Niki Reiser. And now I watched the movie again, I stumbled over it in one if the streaming services and I started watching it...20 years later! And this movie is still fantastic. A true masterpiece about friendship, trust and other problems, which I thought back then only kids have. I am nearly 30 years old but this movie is still fantastic. I would recommend this movie to every teenager to watch...but it's a really nice movie for the "older ones" too:)