Almost 300 films will be screened at the Berlinale this year: You have the choice between high-quality arthouse productions, courageous experiments, classics of film history, children's films, comedies and tragedies, stock footage of our reality or cinematic poetry.
We have taken a look at the program for you in advance and selected eleven promising films from possible areas.
Have fun at the cinema.
Tip 1: Small Things like these
Oppenheimer star Cillian Murphy presents his latest film Small Things like these and opens the Berlinale with it. The actor has been in competition for years with films such as The Party (check out the clips from the Berlinal press conference on YouTube) and Alof.
But even before that, he could already be admired in Panorama films such as Disoc Pigs and Breakfast on Pluto. He is one of those actors that you discover relatively unknown at some point in a Berlinale film and whose career you then keep an eye on, like Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's Bone, Carey Mulligan in An Education or Andrew Garfield in Boy A. All the better when they then make a career for themselves and are finally recognized with an Oscar nomination.
Tip 2: L’Empire
Star Wars in the French provinces: Of all the films in the competition, L'Empire by provocative director Bruno Dumont sounds particularly shrill, as it is a science fiction comedy about aliens somewhere in the depths of France.
Tip 3: Spaceman
Adam Sandler flies into space: the Berlinale Specials are showing another science fiction film with the world premiere of Spaceman. The film is based on the novel A Brief History of Bohemian Space Travel by Jaroslav Kalfař. Also on board are Carey Mulligan, Kunal Nayyar, Lena Olin and Isabella Rossellini.
Tip 4: Sterben
Lars Eidinger is also one of the Berlinale regulars. This year he is represented with the film The Panther in the Panorama and competition entry Sterben. The film is directed by Matthias Glasner, who was already in competition with Gnade in 2012. The other roles are also prominently cast with German actors Corinna Harfouch, Robert Gwisdek and Ronald Zehrfeld. Incidentally, there are three German entries in the competition this year, two feature films and one documentary.
Tipp 5: The Roundup: Punishment (Beom-Joe-do-si 4)
Things really get down to business in The Roundup: Punishment. South Korean star Ma Dong-seok fights his way through the next round in the successful "The Roundup" series as Detective Ma Seok-do. So if you want to see some action, this is certainly the right place for you.
Tip 6: The Departed
Policeman and mole: Matt Damon gets entangled in a duel with Leonardo DiCaprio. The Departed from 2006 is a suspenseful thriller full of twists and turns, false identities and great actors. The Oscar-winning work by Martin Scorsese is a - successful - remake of the highlight of Hong Kong cinema, Infernal Affairs, starring megastar Andy Lau, which was celebrated by an enthusiastic audience in the legendary midnight series at the Berlinale.
The film is being screened on the occasion of the presentation of the Honorary Bear to the exceptional director Martin Scorsese, so this evening promises to be a very special highlight.
Even more Scorsese, because he is not only a gifted director, but also a profound connoisseur of film history - and a big fan of the legendary directors Powell and Pressburger. He has dedicated a documentary film to them. It's a shame that there isn't another series with works by the two, because their films, including eternal masterpieces such as The red shoes, Black Narcissus or The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, are simply great!
Tip 7: The Outrun
The panorama film The Outrun by Nora Fingscheidt starring Saoirse Ronan has already screened at the Sundance Film Festival.It is based on the autobiographical novel by Amy Liptrot and tells the story of a young woman who retreats to the rough and lonely Orkney Islands after rehab. The wonderful Saoirse Ronan is sure to inspire you in this movie too. Critics hailed her and the film as Oscar-worthy right after the premiere.
Tip 8: Les gens d’à côté
Les gens d'à côté with Isabelle Huppert, another welcome Berlinale guest, is also showing in the Panorama. André Téchiné's film tells the story of a policewoman whose new neighbor turns out to be an anti-police activist. The director has already shown his touching film Quand on a 17 ans in the 2016 Competition.
Tip 9: Last swim / Sieger sein
Last Swim opens the Generation 14plus program, which is aimed at young people, on Friday evening. The film focuses on a day and a night in the life of the young British-Iranian student Ziba, who has to reshape her life.
The children's program GenerationKplus starts on Friday afternoon with the German film Sieger sein, which tells the story of a Kurdish girl in Wedding. It's worth going to the premiere of both films at the start of the festival, as the atmosphere is particularly exuberant.
Tip 10: Die endlose Nacht
This year's retrospective under the motto "The Other Cinema - From the Archive of the Deutsche Kinemathek" is dedicated to non-conformist German films beyond the known canon. Incidentally, many of them are set in Berlin - such as the episodic film Die endlose Nacht from 1963, which was filmed after closing time at West Berlin's Tempelhof Airport and paints a true picture of that time.
Tip 11: Elf Mal Morgen: Berlinale Meets Fußball
For the cultural program of the European Football Championship 2024, the Berlinale has commissioned a collection of short films that present eleven very different youth teams. Students from the HFF Munich have produced eleven films that deal with inclusion, diversity and sustainability in soccer. A great introduction to Football Championship in June.
