Berlin Alexanderplatz

views updated

Berlin Alexanderplatz ★★★½ 1980

Fassbinder's 15 1/2hour epic follows the life, death, and resurrection of Franz Biberkof, a former transit worker who has just finished a lengthy prison term and must learn to adjust in the harsh social atmosphere of Berlin in the 1920s. Melodramatic parable with biblical overtones considered by some to be a masterpiece. Based on the novel by Alfred Doblin; originally aired as a miniseries on German TV. 930m/C VHS . GE Gunter Lamprecht, Hanna Schygulla, Barbara Sukowa, Gottfried John, Elisabeth Trissenaar, Brigitte Mira, Karin Baal, Ivan Desny, Margit Carstensen; D: Rainer Werner Fassbinder; W: Rainer Werner Fassbinder; C: Xaver Schwarzenberger; M: Peer Raben. TV