''Westler'' is a 1985 film originally produced for

West German West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...

television and later released in cinema. It was directed by

Wieland Speck Wieland Speck (* 1951 in Freiburg im Breisgau is a German film director, who since 1992 has coordinated "Panorama" at the International Filmfestival Berlin (Berlinale). Panorama showcases new films by established directors, as well as debut works ...

and broadcast on

ZDF ZDF (), short for (; ), is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. Launched on 1 April 1963, it is run as an independent nonprofit institution, and was founded by all federal states of Germany ( ...

Synopsis

Felix is visited in

West Berlin West Berlin ( or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin from 1948 until 1990, during the Cold War. Although West Berlin lacked any sovereignty and was under military occupation until German reunification in 1 ...

by an American friend from

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. The two make a day trip to

East Berlin East Berlin (; ) was the partially recognised capital city, capital of East Germany (GDR) from 1949 to 1990. From 1945, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet occupation sector of Berlin. The American, British, and French se ...

where they meet Thomas. Thomas and Felix fall in love but are divided by the

Wall A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or serves a decorative purpose. There are various types of walls, including border barriers between countries, brick wal ...

, much like all of Germany at the time. Felix tries to keep their relationship strong by making regular visits to Thomas in the East, but this raises the suspicions of the

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

authorities. Eventually, Thomas seeks to flee to West Germany by flying to

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, where a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

friend has arranged a contact with an escape helper.

Background

''Westler'' is noteworthy for its realistic portrayal of a gay relationship under difficult circumstances, as well as for having been filmed partly in

without permission from

authorities.

Cast

* Sigurd Rachman as Felix *

Rainer Strecker Rainer Strecker (born 25 October 1965) is a German actor. He is best known as the voice of the audiobooks of the Inkheart series by Cornelia Funke Cornelia Maria Funke (; born 10 December 1958) is a German author of children's fiction. Born ...

as Thomas * Andy Lucas as Bruce * Frank Rediess as Bernie *

Andreas Bernhardt Andreas () is a name derived from the Greek noun ἀνήρ ''anēr'', with genitive ἀνδρός ''andros'', which means "man". See the article on Andrew for more information. The Scandinavian name is earliest attested as antreos in a runestone ...

as Jürgen * Sasha Kogo as Elke *

Hans-Jürgen Punte Hans-Jürgen (or rarely Hansjürgen) is a German masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: *Hans-Jürgen Abt of Abt Sportsline, a motor racing and auto tuning company based in Kempten im Allgäu, Germany *Hans-Jürgen von Arnim (1 ...

as Lutze * Zazie de Paris as night club singer *

Harry Baer Harry Baer (born Harry Zöttl on 27 September 1947) is a German actor, producer and author, best known for his work with director Rainer Werner Fassbinder. He has also been credited as Harry Bär. Life Harry Baer began his career in Munich when h ...

as Customs officer * Christoph Eichhorn as actor * Jörg Uwe Dost as Guest at the bar *

Thomas Kretschmann Thomas Kretschmann (; born 8 September 1962) is a German actor who has appeared in many European and American films. His notable roles include Lieutenant Hans von Witzland in ''Stalingrad'' (1993), Hauptmann Wilm Hosenfeld in '' The Pianist'' (2 ...

as Soldier *

Georges Stamkowski Georges may refer to: Places *Georges River, New South Wales, Australia *Georges Quay (Dublin) *Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania Other uses *Georges (name) * ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas * "Georges" (song), a 1977 ...

as Pavel *

The Waltons ''The Waltons'' is an American historical drama television series about a family in rural mountainous Western Virginia of the Appalachian Mountains / Allegheny Mountains / Blue Ridge Mountains chain, during the economic hardships and mass unemp ...

as the Band ** Martin Zastrow as Band member ** Engelbert Rehm as Band member * Andrew Kelner as little child

Awards

* Max Ophüls Festival, Audience Award, 1985 * San Francisco International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, Audience Award, 1986 * Torino International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, the Festival's Plate, 1987

Reception

The film gained a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 50%. *Helmut Schödel in

Die Zeit (, ) is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles. History The first edition of was ...

said "… secretly must be filmed, secretly loved … it's about love, not about truth … I'm excited …" * Encyclopedia of International Film : "A film about one in the multiple sense, love between the systems"; He tries to describe the Berlin Wall not only as an obstacle between people and political blocs, but also as a borderline between the Old and New World. " * Uwe Witiatock, from

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung The (; ''FAZ''; "Frankfurt General Newspaper") is a German newspaper founded in 1949. It is published daily in Frankfurt and is considered a newspaper of record for Germany. Its Sunday edition is the ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung'' ( ...

said "Partially without official filming permission and therefore filmed with a hidden camera, the divided city of Berlin has an unreal, foreign atmosphere, as if we were in Hong Kong or Singapore. You feel like being in the role of a visitor to a zoo, marveling at the conditions under which beings live in a completely different world." *

taz Taz or TAZ may refer to: Geography *Taz (river), a river in western Siberia, Russia *Taz Estuary, the estuary of the river Taz in Russia People * Taz people, an ethnic group in Russia ** Taz language, a form of Northeastern Mandarin spoken by ...

: "The love story between the young men is extremely pleasant, unobtrusive and unimaginably self-evident. Partially filmed with a hidden camera on original DDR locations, Westler is one of the few German productions that is worthwhile!"

References

External links

* 1985 films 1985 television films 1980s German-language films German LGBTQ-related films 1985 romantic drama films Films set in Berlin Films set in 1985 West German films Films shot in Berlin Films set in the 1980s LGBTQ-related romantic drama films 1985 LGBTQ-related films Films shot in the Czech Republic 1980s German films {{LGBT-drama-film-stub