The Tunnel 2001

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The Tunnel ★★★½ Der Tunnel 2001

Originally produced for German television broadcast. Based on the true story of Harry Melchior (Ferch), an East German swimming champ who fled to West Berlin in 1961 as the wall was going up. Melchior is so committed to getting his sister Lotte (Lara) and her family out of East Berlin that he hatches a plan to dig a tunnel under the wall. Naturally the tunnel becomes a massive undertaking requiring the clandestine enlistment of other West Berliners with loved ones behind the wall. This tense drama is packed with story lines and looming disaster—a rare gem with top notch production values. 157m/C DVD . GE Heino Ferch, Nicolette Krebitz, Sebastian Koch, Mehmet Kurtulus, Alexandra Maria Lara, Felix Eitner; D: Roland Suso Richter; W: Johannes W. Betz; C: Martin Langer; M: Harald Kloser, Thomas Wanker. TV