32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THE BEST MOVIE CONCERNING HEROIN ADDICTION EVER MADE, November 1, 2004
this movie is a must to see HOWEVER if possible PLEASE try to obtain the UK version so that you can watch this in german with English subtitles.IT REALLY MAKES A DIFFERENCE and the US version is also cut a little here and there. I have watched both version of this movie and the english overdubs are horrible. I fell for Natja Brunckhorst in a big way in this movie. THIS IS A MUST to see-check it out
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24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Movie is good - DVD is bare-bones, September 5, 2003
This is a gritty movie about one girl's experience in the Berlin underage prostitution/drug scene of the 70's. This is no glamorized Hollywood movie with mid-twenty year old actors as teens.
This is a depressing movie, although ultimately it has a good ending, at least for Christiane.
I read the 5-star book years and years ago, and after buying the DVD a few months back, I wanted to re-read the book as it has much more detail, and more cycles of getting clean and relapsing than shown in the movie. The book is out of print (natch!), but it is worth checking out used-book stores for it.
The DVD has no extras at all, and as noted by others, no subtitles - you get it in original German, or second-rate dubbed English. I watch it both ways - German for the emotion, English for understanding.
Still, highly recommended for a change from the Hollywood usual. Much David Bowie in the soundtrack.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Powerful and Gripping! - Why No Subtitles?, December 15, 2002
If you are interested in the substance abuse genre, this movie is the most realistic, powerful, and disturbing I've seen. Compare this to the likes of "Days of Wine and Roses", "The Man With the Golden Arm" and "28 Days", and the others all seem lame and glossed over. The only film that I thought came close to the level of realism of "Chrstiane F." was "Panic in Needle Park".
This film takes you to the horrifying depths of heroin addiction, as excruciatingly experienced by a German teenager and her "friends". Based on a true story from the 1970's Berlin drug scene, the title character is from a dysfuntional family who eventually falls into the grips of heroin addiction and prostitution by age 14. Great soundtrack, with Bowie (I especially liked the version of Heroes that is sung partly in German), great depiction of the 70's club scene in Berlin, which was rampant with drug use. Even though in color, has the gritty feel of a noir. The film also captures dead-on the desperation of addiction, and how the addicts life becomes all about the next shot. The film also does a great job of conveying the depravity and desolation of the Berlin Zoo train station, a haven for prostitues and addicts at the time.
Based on a book of the same name (unfortunately, last I checked, the book was out of print), the movie of course does not go into as much detail (what movie based on a book does?) but nonetheless, this is a brutal, accurate portrait of the ravages of drug use.
Two things, if you can find the book, buy it. The book was riveting and goes into much greater depth of the girls family background, and her early drug use pre-heroin addiction. Also the movie condenses her many "cold turkey" episodes into one or two instances, and the true horror of her withdrawals are much more graphic and real in the book.
Secondly, I would have given this 5 stars if the movie were subtitled instead of dubbed. It takes a lot away from the film, and I would recommend waiting until it is released (hopefully) in German with subtitles. I was fortunate enough to have seen the film in the theatre in German with subtitles, and it made a big difference.
A classic movie of this genre, a must see, even with the dubbing!
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