Le monde sur le fil

HIGHLY recommended to fans of classy/cheesy 70's sci-fi, very early "cyberpunk", and vintage German film: the recently re-"discovered" and restored, creepy mind-bender "Welt am Draht" ("World on a Wire") originally shot on 16mm film and presented as a 2-part miniseries on West German television in 1973. while it's obviously quite long, starts out kinda slow, flounders at times in cheesy existentialism, has no special effects to speak of, and has been ripped off so much it almost seems clichéd at this point (the massively inferior 1999's "The Thirteenth Floor" was based on the same book, and similar concepts have cropped up in a variety of stories throughout sci-fi...) it was SO far ahead of its time that it still packs a lot of relevant futuristic cyber-bite, albeit with a VERY sweet, classy retro style. it's very much an "intellectual" James Bond in Alphaville, though with some "2001" flourishes of design and cinematography... maybe not the greatest of masterpieces, but such an influential and unique sci-fi classic, it really should be seen by any fan of the genres or style, especially for the first time in decades!

First of all, this film is nearly impossible to get a grip on, but the upcoming Fassbinder DVD-Collection (Code 2!) hopefully includes this one. If you are fond of virtual reality stories (and capable of understanding the German language) you might want to look for a video-hunt. This film is truly fascinating, with a great cast of famous (and sometimes notorious...) German actors. It foreshadows everything about VR - because it is the first adaption of the novel "Simulacron", on which "13th Floor" is based as well. "Welt am Draht" is brilliantly shot by Michael Ballhaus and Ulrich Prinz. Although I am not a fan of Fassbinder's works, I really liked the eerie atmosphere and the hilarious 70's design.

Rating 9/10!

Recently rediscovered TV film made by Fassbinder in the mid-70s, it's an early film dealing with the sci-fi concept of virtual reality. The subject became really popular in the late 90s with the mega-hit The Matrix and several other more cultish flicks like Dark City, eXistenZ and The Thirteenth Floor (which was actually based on the same novel as World on a Wire). This is notably less cheesy than a lot of 70s sci-fi, though 70s styles are ever-present in the decor. I don't know if I'd say it's as fun as some of those cheesy 70s sci-fis, though. The film is split into two parts, and, as a whole, runs about three and a half hours. They probably could have cut it down a lot, because it really drags at times. The one thing I really love about it is the visuals. It might be Fassbinder's most visually resplendent work. I doubt someone watching it on a television screen in 1973 (probably the great majority watched it in black and white) could have appreciated the gorgeousness of it. The Criterion Blu Ray is gorgeous and very unique looking. As long as it was, the visuals always kept me enthralled. Like a lot of early Fassbinder films, it's a bit dry and could use some more interesting characters - he became a much better director starting around this same time when he started embracing melodrama.

This quite unknown movie impresses the viewer the longer one watches! Even more than 40 years after the release the idea of powerful computers being able to influence our lives has not yet reached the reality in a way as Fassbinder shows us. The camera settings are fascinating, regarding the actors especially Klaus Löwitsch representing Fred Stiller impresses in his actions. His ability to make the viewer believe the character he represents gives his role as a quite simple looking technical director (though he calls himself scientist) a certain kind of deepness. The female actors represent very much the type of woman of the 1070s as of course the total outfit of the furniture. I was amused that the same curtain with particular circular pattern shown in the movie can be found in our old weekend house. Mascha Rabben as Eva is convincing but not comparable to the acting of Klaus Löwitsch (Stiller). At first I thought a movie of 3 1/2 hours of that kind must be too long, but I would't like to miss one minute of it. The reason for only 8 points is the virtual reality movies are not my favorites.

Is it possible that the Wachowski brothers knew "Welt am Draht"? That they took the concept of a 'puppet inside a puppet' for "The Matrix" too? The end of "Matrix Reloaded" (2nd Movie, the third is still not out while I am writing this) tells us what the "real world" in Matrix will be: another Matrix :-)