''Eight Miles High'' (original title: ''Das wilde Leben'', lit. ''The Wild Life'') is a 2007 German biographical motion picture, set in the 1960s and depicting the "wild life" of

Uschi Obermaier Ursula "Uschi" Obermaier (; born 24 September 1946) is a former fashion model and actress associated with the 1968 left-wing movement in Germany. She is considered an iconic sex symbol of the so-called "1968 generation" and the protests of 1968 ...

, a West German

sex symbol A sex symbol or icon is a person or character widely considered sexually attractive and often synonymous with sexuality. Pam Cook, "The trouble with sex: Diana Dors and the Blonde bombshell phenomenon", In: Bruce Babinigton (ed.), ''British St ...

and icon of the era.

Plot

Obermaier enjoyed sexual freedom at the legendary

Kommune 1 Kommune 1 or K1 was a politically motivated commune in Germany. It was created on 12 January 1967, in West Berlin and finally dissolved in November 1969. Kommune 1 developed from the extraparliamentary opposition of the German student moveme ...

in Berlin after being with the

krautrock Krautrock (also called , German for ) is a broad genre of experimental rock that developed in Germany in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It originated among artists who blended elements of psychedelic rock, avant-garde composition, and electron ...

band Bröselpilze. In the Kommune, she becomes friendly with

Rainer Langhans Rainer Langhans (born 19 June 1940 in Oschersleben) is a German writer and filmmaker who is primarily known for his membership in Kommune 1 Kommune 1 or K1 was a politically motivated commune in Germany. It was created on 12 January 1967, ...

. The young woman from Munich gains employment as a model, and becomes a

and youth icon. Now a cover girl in

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

magazine, she meets rock stars such as

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...

and

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who is an original member, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-principal songwriter of the Rolling Stones. His songwriting partnership wi ...

, while Italian film producer,

Carlo Ponti Carlo Fortunato Pietro Ponti Sr. (11 December 1912 – 10 January 2007) was an Italian film producer with more than 140 productions to his credit. Along with Dino De Laurentiis, he is credited with reinvigorating and popularizing Italian cin ...

, offers her a ten-year contract, but she declines: her freedom is more important than a contract. During her intensive relationship with Keith Richards, she begins to recognize the dark side of the shiny glamour world she lives in: the isolation of the stars, and the groupie-populated milieux of anonymous hotel rooms — this is not her idea of life. She finds new freedom in a relationship with the adventurer Dieter Bockhorn (David Scheller). They fall in love and go on a six-year road trip around the world. Later, Bockhorn dies in a motorcycle accident in Mexico.

Cast

Natalia Avelon Natalia Avelon ( Siwek; born 29 March 1980) is a German actress and singer of Polish birth. Biography Avelon was born Natalia Siwek on 29 March 1980 in Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Sil ...

Matthias Schweighöfer Matthias Schweighöfer (; born 11 March 1981) is a German actor and filmmaker known for his work in several German and American film productions. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Franz Herber in the 2008 film ''Valkyrie''. In 2021, Sch ...

* Victor Norén (singer of the Swedish band

Sugarplum Fairy Sugarplum Fairy is a pop-rock band from Borlänge, Sweden. The members took the name from a version of the Beatles' song " A Day in the Life" where John Lennon counts the song in by saying "sugar-plum-fairy, sugar-plum-fairy". Sugarplum Fairy w ...

) as

*Alexander Scheer as

David Scheller David Scheller (born October 12, 1972) is a German actor. Since the early 1990s he appeared in many German TV- and film productions and also participated in a few international movies like ''Fay Grim'' or '' Extreme Ops''. In series and films D ...

as Dieter Bockhorn. *

Urs Rechn Urs Rechn (born 18 January 1978) is a German actor, most known for his appearance in the 2015 Cannes Grand Prix-winning Holocaust drama ''Son of Saul''. Biography Urs Günther Rechn was born on 18 January 1978, in Halle an der Saale, then Ge ...

as "the knocker" Norbert Grupe

Production crew

*Directed by Achim Bornhak. *Written by Achim Bornhak and Olaf Kraemer. *Based on a work by C. P. Hant, Dagmar Benke and Olaf Kraemer

Filming locations

*Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, and Bavaria in Germany *Goa, Jaipur, and Rajasthan in India

Soundtrack

Ville Valo Ville Hermanni Valo (; born 22 November 1976) is a Finnish singer, songwriter and musician. He is best known as the lead vocalist of the gothic rock band HIM (Finnish band), HIM. Born and raised in Helsinki to a Hungarian mother and Finnish fa ...

and

recorded a cover version of the

Nancy Sinatra Nancy Sandra Sinatra (born June 8, 1940) is an American singer, actress, film producer and author. She is the elder daughter of Frank Sinatra and Nancy Sinatra ( Barbato) and is known for her 1965 signature hit " These Boots Are Made for Walki ...

Lee Hazlewood Barton Lee Hazlewood (July 9, 1929 – August 4, 2007) was an American country and pop singer, songwriter, and record producer, most widely known for his work with guitarist Duane Eddy during the late 1950s and singer Nancy Sinatra in the 1960s ...

song ''

Summer Wine "Summer Wine" is a song written by Lee Hazlewood. Hazlewood originally performed it with Suzi Jane Hokom, but it was his 1967 version with Nancy Sinatra that would prove more successful. In 1969 Lee Hazlewood performed the song on Swedish televi ...

'' for the soundtrack. A music video was also shot, featuring Valo and Avelon with the real Uschi Obermaier.

References

External links

Official Movie Website
* 2007 films 2007 biographical drama films 2000s feminist films 2000s German-language films Cultural depictions of models Cultural depictions of German people Cultural depictions of the Rolling Stones Films about groupies Films directed by Achim Bornhak Films set in the 1960s Films set in India Films set in West Germany German biographical drama films German rock music films Hippie films Musical films based on actual events Warner Bros. films 2000s German films {{bio-film-stub