KnotMissPriceless Why so much hype?

Lovesusti The Worst Film Ever

Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

Kaydan Christian A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

grantss Well made, just a pity about the lack of objectivity.Well-shot, well-acted biopic. A pity then that the director and writer clearly left their objectivity at the door. The movie was so anti- establishment and pro-the terrorists that it became irritating to watch. The terrorists are portrayed as glorious idealists and the cops and government as bumbling fascist bastards. This despite the fact that the German legal system gave the terrorists every possible break. This all said, the cinematography and action sequences are great, as is the acting.

elb_s Despite being politically active, and (I thought) relatively well-versed in 20th century anti-capitalist/colonialist revolutionary movements, my knowledge of the RAF going into this movie was scant.Probably because I'm American and have been raised on our cultural propaganda (wherein historic social victories are whitewashed to locate success only within our infallible constitutional framework; and where any revolutionaries since the Founding Fathers could not have acted on beliefs that were righteous, and must recant those former beliefs with soul-searching regret for their UNRIGHTEOUS ideologies)I expected a lot more focus on maudlin gray area. Not that the film cast the RAF as heroes to cheer for. Reading the reviews here, I recognize now that the critiques of the RAF's actions were present, just not in the "hit-you-over-the-head" manner of U.S. documentaries.Despite the harms done by the RAF (which were minuscule compared to the harms they protested); despite the contradiction of so much of their ideology and praxis with my own beliefs (e.g., their embracing nationalism, assassination, etc.)--I'll be damned if I didn't cheer for them all the way through.I'm surprised so many have presumed this film wouldn't resonate with a young American audience. While not so young myself, I spent a great deal of time with folks of all ages in the heyday of Occupy. The frustration at the collective inertia to action amongst complacent modern Americans is palpable amongst folks of all political stripes. And growing...at a certain point, the swelling malcontent can't help a *bit* of respect for groups who actually act on their articulated agenda...and an agenda that includes killing a few bankers and fascist cops? The elite talking head circle underestimate the mood of the American public if they suppose the history portrayed here would evince emotional disconnect or outrage. Besides, the acting was beyond-respectable, the pace engrossing, and the recreation of the era felt authentic. Admittedly there were loose ends regarding ideological development...thankfully the internet and my library provide me plenty opportunity to tie up those ends.As initially stated, I find my inner blood-lust a bit disturbing upon reflection (you hear that PRISM? I neither have nor plan to have a murderous vanguard association at any point!)...but in this era of learned helplessness, I'm not sure that's entirely a bad thing.

Robyn Nesbitt (nesfilmreviews) "The Baader-Meinhof Group" is a provocative, brutal, German film meticulously directed by Uli Edel "Last Exit to Brooklyn" (1990), written by Bernd Eichinger "Downfall" (2004), and stars some of Germany's best actors: Martina Gedeck, Moritz Bleibtreu, Johanna Wokalek and Bruno Ganz. These talents come together to tell the story of the founders of the Red Faction Army (RAF), one of Germany's violent left- wing anti-capitalist group against western imperialism in Germany, whose logo is a combination of a Red Star and an MP5 sub-machine gun. Working off of transcripts and real-life accounts, Uli Edel simply re-creates the story and history of the Red Army Faction in accordance with the historical record, while never imposing judgment or opinions. Germany in the 1970s: Murderous bomb attacks; the threat of terrorism and the fear of the enemy infiltrating high levels of government is rocking at the very foundations of the fragile German democracy. The radicalized children of the Nazi generation are led by Andreas Baader, Ulrike Meinhof, and Gudrun Ensslin who are fighting a violent war against what they perceive as the new face of fascism: American imperialism supported by the German establishment--many of whom have a Nazi past. Their aim is to create a more human society, but by employing the use of terrorism and the threat of violence, they lose their own humanity in the process. "The Baader Meinhof Complex" is visually riveting with fantastic action scenes, and at times can become almost emotionally overwhelming. Edel propels the complex narrative and its myriad ricochets, and it surprisingly holds together quite well. That being said, the sheer length and constant brutality and bloodshed mount, making the viewing of last third of the film laborious. An impressive, well done period piece, but "The Baader-Meinhof Complex" is diluted by too many events, with too many characters, distributed over too much time.

sergepesic Late 60's and 70's were tumultuous in both USA and Western Europe. Extremely conservative governments were completely out of touch with the liberal young population, and, of course, the result was catastrophic.Fighting the communists was the only order of the day, and in that battle the West went to bed with a lot of unsavory characters. We are still paying for some of those moronic decisions. This brilliant movie follows the tragic outcome of this rigid governing. Using the logical anger and discontent of the Western youth, some people with their own issues and agendas abducted their political goals and unleashed the terrorist horror on West Germany. The director paints this people as they are, dangerous and violent. There is nothing glamorous about this anti-heroes. The only warning is that when the powers to be stop listening to their young, there will be serious trouble.