Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) "Der Baader Meinhof Komplex" is a German 2.5-hour movie from 7 years ago that managed Golden Globe and Oscar nominations, but lost to the Israeli and Japanese entries there. And that is very acceptable as this one here is really not such a convincing movie. It is about the German left-extreme group RAF that was part of several terrorist acts in the 1960s and 1970s. First of all, the film's biggest strength is the cast: Gedeck, Bleibtreu, Wokalek, Ganz, Lara, Schilling, Ferch, Liefers, Thieme and I could go on. All very established names in German movies and you know you get quality when you see them on a cast list. The best performance here probably comes from Johanna Wokalek who plays Gudrun Ensslin brilliantly. Quite a pity she is so rare in films these days. Change that Johanna if you read this.Sadly, this magnificent cast cannot turn a mediocre movie into something great. Uli Edel and Bernd Eichinger are certainly not known for outstanding talent in terms of directing, writing and producing movies and Constantin Film AG is known for producing quantity over quality in general and this is also the case here. First of all, the films would have needed a lot more focus. They could have kept it at 100 instead of 150 minutes and nothing of value would have been lost. There are many scenes who add nothing at all to the film. This especially refers to almost the entire last 30 minutes, in which they apparently decided to basically make almost a completely new movie. Some of the characters from previously were dead (Meinhof), some were in jail, but got almost no screen time (Baader), so they went with completely new characters who never appeared before in the film and where we had no clue who they actually were and why the focus was suddenly on them. A really bad example of lacking focus. Yes it was okay that they took the Schleyer kidnapping in there, but they executed this part in the worst possibly way one could imagine.Other than that, just like with many other Eichinger productions, this film is very much showy and in your face and has pretty much zero subtlety (the last shot, in the truest sense of the word, was a great example) in terms of the script (some of the actors brought it still thanks to their talent). Edel and Eichinger were lucky that the topic (RAF) does not really need too much subtlety and they did not destroy the film with their shortcomings in that area like they did with other movies. And finally, another criticism is that Bruno Ganz who I really love as an actor was really wasted in this movie here with his character adding absolutely nothing the way he was written. Pretty sad. All in all, the movie is okay as a watch for everybody with an interest in German post-WWII history, but it's nowhere near as good as it could have been. The actors really saved it from becoming a disaster and make it worth the watch. Recommended.

stuartwhite383 I confess an interest. I once worked with the director Uli Edel, who was then attached to my script Crossmaglen. We worked on the script at his house in Los Angeles and he was the perfect host, and clearly an amazing film maker. Unfortunately he eventually parted company with the project. Tonight I saw The Baader Meinhof Complex, which I knew Uli had directed, for the first time.It's a little masterpiece all of its own..contemporary history immortalised. I lived through that period - though not in Germany - and I remember the angst, but not how bloody and violent it all was. The movie itself is utterly gripping and one simply doesn't doubt that you're in the Seventies, from clothes to cars to just mood, furniture, curtains even. It shows in great narrative form the rise of Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof, why they became what they were - the rather odd sinister West German society of the time, but also pulls no punches in its depiction of the two main players and their acolytes as vain, spoilt and horrendously violent and uncaring individuals. To see them crushed by the prison system, though, is also sobering.The action scenes are just second to none..I've had a live round fired at me and - yes - all concerned duck when being fired at as they do in this film.I end by saying I have no axe to grind or benefit to be gained by posting this review, but I wished to be honest in that I know the director. I haven't seen Uli for five years and have no commercial dealings with him. This is just an incredible film..in its way, on a par with Pontecorvo's The Battle of Algiers in its significance and its study of urban terrorism. I truly believe that. How this one didn't get the attention and plaudits it deserves since it opened three years ago, is beyond me. But then...I saw it tonight, so who am I to criticise? Just a must see movie. See the damn thing!!!

spamobile Most people have most likely forgotten this era in the history of Europe. But those that grew up in these times can most likely remember this well. There were of course more terrorist groups in those days but for myself, coming from The Netherlands, these were one of the more notorious groups. Although the cause was not as much the problem, the means to try to achieve this were of course totally unacceptable. The movie is a good depiction of this era and all what happened around the Baader Meinhoff group. Possibly not all fact are true in the movie but it's not a documentary, it's a proper movie with high realism. You have to see this in German of course, that adds to the realism of the movie. I think it's well played, no nonsense, believable characters. Watch it, well worth it I think!

HuntinPeck80 From the pov of someone only familiar with the names Baader-Meinhof and not at all informed about the group's intentions or the political context in which they worked, I found this film both fascinating and perplexing. Close to 2.5 hrs but the surprise is it could have done with being longer, the relentless action and frenetic changes of place and activity (as if the characters had been teleported from one country to another) having a dislocating effect.Some have claimed the film is shot in the manner of a documentary because of an apparent neutrality of tone, but I think a documentary would have been better structured and more informative. For a non-German there are many moments where the behaviour of the characters or official bodies is totally alien and hard to explicate. As a dramatisation it lacks a satisfying structure, the ending abrupt and no afterword on the group's legacy. I agree with another contributor that the use of mainstream pop is a bit unimaginative, unless the point is to present Baader & co. as disaffected kids who nonetheless have a pop cultural sensibility - indeed, one could interpet their actions as simply an ultraviolent but juvenile act of rebellion against patriarchy. The constant changes of scene, pop music, swearing and smoking, scenes of public nakedness: all this seems designed to capture the perceived young audience with a tiny attention span. Not wanting to risk sobriety the film chooses instead sensationalism, perhaps deliberately bypassing a truly serious-minded portrait of what must be a divisive episode in German history.The Baader-Meinhof Complex did succeed in making me curious to know more about these people and I'll be looking for a suitable book or documentary. For those looking for entertainment, the film certainly delivers startling violence and heated emotions and the group's actions are left open to interpretation, even if one ultimately longs for stronger characterisation and more time to process what's happening.