Customer Reviews

The Wave ( Die Welle ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - United Kingdom ]

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Germany, The Present: Rainer Wenger (Jorgen Vogel) is a middle-aged high school teacher who has been reluctantly tasked with teaching an optional class on the notion of "autocracy" during project week. A former anarchist himself, Wenger initially encounters gentle resistance from his teenage wards - who are predominately the indulged, privileged children of successful middle class intellectuals who have been so inculcated with the historical significance and conduct of the Nazis that they have come to believe that it would be impossible for a dictatorship such as the National Socialist Worker's Party to rise to dominance again. With this in mind, Wenger initiates a week-long practical experiment in the class in order to examine whether just such an event is truly possible. But as the class begin to coalesce around the authoritarian youth movement, which they name "The Wave",events begin to run out of control...

Like its recent German contemporary, The Experiment, "The Wave" is a fictionalized account of events which actually occurred in the US: "Das Experiment" was a reimagining of Philip Zimbardo's notorious "Stanford Prison" experiments (chronicled in his book, The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil) and "The Wave" is based on an actual class experiment which allegedly ran out of control in Pao Alto, California in the late sixties (and which was fictionalized by Morton Rhue/Todd Strasser in his book, The Wave (New Windmills)).

Dennis Gansel's film is a thought-provoking examination of the nature of unity, peer pressure and social affiliation in contemporary society which eschews easy conclusions about just who is susceptible to the corrupting nature power. In less talented hands it could have been an utterly pedestrian exercise, but Gansel explicitly (but subtly) demonstrates how the initially attractive notions of strength through social unity and cohesion can be perverted. Alarmingly, like the school principle who is initially won over by the way in which Wenger's Wave experiment appears to motivate his students, the audience finds itself seduced by the way in which the initially disparate and feckless students begin to work together as a unit in order to win at Water Polo and produce the school play, but to Gansel's credit when events inevitably take a turn for the sinister, he refuses to indulge in soap opera; his teenage subjects do not degenerate into faceless automatons but rather retain their very realistic personalities within the framework of their movement. One witnesses the march of the innocently unaware into the jaws of totalitarianism: when, for instance, they adopt a salute, they relate to the concept of it as "mellow, chilled-out" sign of social greeting rather than to the overtly sinister vaguely connotation that it has for outsiders (something which, one must inevitably conclude, also played out in the streets of nineteen thirties Germany amongst members of the Hitler youth).

Gansel also subtly examines the way in which the concept of tribal affiliation extends far beyond "The Wave". When his white-shirted protagonists face off against a group of anarchist punks, one is struck by the uniformity of the so-called rabidly individual anarchists. Similarly, when "the wave" turn out in droves to support the school water polo team, one is prompted to ponder the inherent uniformity that exists amongst "normal" sports fans who turn out in their colours to support their teams in everday life.

A brilliant depiction of the unwitting seduction of the gullible, "The Wave" is one of the most thought-provoking treatise on the corruption of social affiliation that you'll see in mainstream cinema.

Dennis Gansel's "The Wave" is one of those hot button cautionary tales that, when handled incorrectly, can be painfully over-the-top. This German film, however, takes a controversial and provocative subject and keeps a remarkably level head. And I'll tell you what--this movie blew me away! Taking its inspiration from a real life incident, "The Wave" posits how fascism might easily reposition itself in a contemporary setting. This political allegory is all the more unsettling in that it is actually developed in a believable way. With the powerful "Before The Fall" and the stylish "We Are The Night," Gansel is fast becoming one of my favorite screenwriters and directors. He can and does make visually arresting films, but actually has something of import to say as well. If you have not seen "Before The Fall," I strongly recommend that one as well for a more historical look at youths and fascism.

"The Wave" is set in modern day Germany. A high school curriculum has students enrolling in special projects based on different forms of government. A popular teacher (a great Jurgen Vogel) tries to invigorate his seminar on autocracy by stimulating discussion in unorthodox ways. He leads the class in exercises in discipline, uniformity, and communal ideals. The students are so taken, they start really coming together. It's as if by providing order and structure, the kids are getting something they didn't know they were missing. But this new group spirit also brings about a certain elitism and brashness. Some are taking the experiment a bit far, and those that oppose them must face the repercussions. As the days progress, the situation becomes increasingly tense.

What might have been a heavy-handed diatribe is, in Gansel's astute screenplay, a story of disaffected youths realizing their potential as well as their mistakes. While it appears things are getting too serious, the end act strikes just the right balance. The cast is uniformly excellent with the diverse group of kids getting ample character development which makes the film even more disturbing. This is certainly a film that can be analyzed and discussed, but this is not really the forum for that. If you enjoy challenging, serious-minded filmmaking--treat yourself to "The Wave." It will make you think, but have no fear, it is also thoroughly entertaining as well. I loved it! KGHarris, 11/11.

"The Wave" is a German film directed by Dennis Gansel. The film is based on a true story of an experiment by a high school teacher, Ron Jones, who taught a class in autocracy, and demonstrated how easily the masses could be manipulated. The experiment was called The Third Wave, and it took place at Cubberley High School in Palo Alto, California during the first week of April, 1967. This film is a warning to all about how fragile democracy is as within a week a class of students were manipulated to accept a fascist point of view. The movie convincingly conveys the transistion, and how it affected a community.

This was a very good film, which actually went much further than the American version of the same film did. Usually, it follows the American version fairly closely, with some added bits and German cultural equivalents. Be prepared to be shocked at the end, however. I won't say any more about it than has been said. I think it suffices. But I was very moved by this film, and circumstances like this really could happen (have happened, many times over) -- anywhere, any time.

How do you relate to an unthinkable heritage? It is easy enough to embrace and celebrate the heroic struggles that define one's cultural or national identity, but is it enough to label the evils as such in order to safely relegate them to the past?

In Dennis Gansel's film The Wave (Die Welle) a likeable but unorthodox German high school teacher sets out to demonstrate to his students that fascism is still possible, and finds his experiment to be more successful than even he had predicted. Rainer, who had been planning to teach a course on anarchism and punk rock, is assigned to teach a special module on fascism and autocracy. Confronted with the apathy of students who find the topic both irrelevant and done to death, he decides to try another approach: he shows them firsthand just how appealing a regime based on order, unity and discipline can be.

As the students' fascination with dictatorial techniques of social control leads to their enthusiastic participation, the newly established community takes on a life of its own that grows dangerously out of control. The film is based on a true story of a teacher in California who, at the peak of the social upheaval in the 70's, wanted to show his students how Nazi Germany and the horrors of Auschwitz could come to be. The genius of the film - which manages to be thoroughly engaging and fun to watch at the same time as it raises important questions - is in its seamless adaptation of this story to a very different time and place, showing how easily the universal need for acceptance and desire to belong to something important can be perverted into a system that promotes hatred of the nonconformist and of the outsider.

The Wave, the ninth movie directed by young German film maker, Dennis Gansel, cleverly explores the propensity for fascism to remerge in this technologically more sophisticated age. The main character Rainer Wenger, played by Jurgen Vogel, is a left leaning high school teacher who is given a week to present a special project course on Autocracy to senior students. When one of them suggests that Nazism could not remerge he decides to conduct an interesting experiment. He insists that while in class the students always rise to speak to him and address him as Herr Wenger. The following day he introduces calisthenics, where the students stamp their feet in unison. In the days following they adopt a name, a uniform, identifying insignia and salute. These reinforce collective solidarity and distinguish the group from the broader school community. Authoritarianism is rewarded and independence of thought suppressed. Those not willing to internalize the group-think are ostracized and socially excluded. The climax of the film is reached when a highly suggestible, disaffected youth with a fractured childhood responds tragically when the group is disbanded. He takes matters into his own hands with dramatic results. Do we take the narrative seriously? Well, I suppose the film reminds us of Brecht's prescient observation in his brilliant parody of Hitler, "The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui", that the seeds of Fascism remain dormant: "Do not rejoice in his defeat, you men, for though the world has stood up and stopped the [...], the bitch that bore him is still in heat". It is thought provoking with strong performances from the principal actors and ensemble cast.

This film was PERFECT for me to use to bring the story of the classroom experiment known as The Wave up to date. The young people in the film are certainly a rougher breed in general and the language is really rough for American audiences. But the lessons of the story are valuable. It was pretty predictable and the time was compressed so much that it seemed hard to believe that the transformation would take place so quickly. Nevertheless, this is a quality film that has a powerful message.

This movie is based on the book "The Wave" which was inspired by the social experiment "The Third Wave". In the book this scenario takes place in a factious high school in the US. It is, however, based on a true story that took place in California. This movie "Die Welle" (The Wave) is set in a German high school which makes it very intriguing as they experiment with the idea of social conformity and whether Nazi ideals and influence could happen again. Not possible, or is it?

Movie is done really well with the exception of a few trivial errors in editing. Slow start and sound effects can be a bit annoying, but very good story. The main actor, Jürgen Vogel, does an excellent performance as Rainer and his character keeps the movie viewer on edge because one is not sure how or if he will end this project.

Patti

I had to read the book this film is based on a few years ago and was excited to see it brought to life through film, especially with the excellent Juergen Vogel in the cast. I saw it in the original German and was so impressed by the writing and acting, but the story is, of course, the most shocking aspect. The subtle style in which minor conflict is stirred into something that could be disastrous and having children and the 'safe' environment of a school act as the protagonists and setting is brilliant. This is a must-see film, strange and frightening that it is.

Last year, my second semester Social class was learning about Hitler, and the Nazi party. We came across a short film called "The Wave", which was based on a true story about a teacher who taught his class about Hitler in a shocking way: He formed a social club called The Wave, where he brainwashed the kids into acting like Hitler. At the end of the week, he revealed to the kids he was using them to act like Nazis, so that they could learn about Hitler. My entire class was shocked and surprised, no matter how dated it was.

After school, I got home, booted up my laptop and went on IMDb to find out more about the movie, when I came across a page for a German re-imagining called "Die Welle". Now it's not released here in Canada, but I managed to have found an import Region-free DVD with subtitles at the video store during spring break. So having found the copy, I rushed it to the front and laid down the bucks. Then of course, I immediately began watching it when I got home!

I was quite surprised by how good the movie was. I mean, it has great acting, it's gorgeously shot, it tells the story in a way that's shocking yet refreshing. And most importantly, it was entertaining.

The movie tells the story of Mr. Wenger. He is new to the school he teaches at, and his wife teaches at the school too. He is assigned to teach a social studies class. So he gets there, and the class is full of boring and depressing-to-look-at drones. His first day goes over not so well, so the next day, he decides to bring some energy to the class. In teaching about Hitler, he gets people to stand up when they talk. He gets them to to several odd things you wouldn't find in a classroom. Soon this becomes a social club called "The Wave". This is his way of teaching the kids about Hitler in a sense where they won't become bored. Throughout the week, the club spreads like a wave, and thus it spirals out of control!

If you all remember Battle Royale, remember how the kids were forced to kill each other until one remains? Well, that's basically this movie in a nutshell. There's very little violence in the film, yet that's a good thing- it makes the movie even more disturbing. There's good acting in the film, great cinematography, and a shattering climax including the ending, which will knock you flat. If you enjoy a good intellectual flick, then do see "The Wave". It's Germany's very own "Battle Royale".

IN TOTAL:

Entertainment: 10/10

Sex: 0/10

Violence 1/10

Shock factor: 10+/10

It makes you think, doesn't it? 10/10

Would I want to go to a school like that? Definitely not.

***Essential***

Films in a similar Twang: Battle Royale, The Running Man