Die Welle (2008)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Dennis Gansel

Writers:

Dennis Gansel (writer)
Todd Strasser (novel)

Release Date:

13 March 2008 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Plot:

A high school teacher's unusual experiment to demonstrate to his students what life is like under a dictatorship spins horribly out of control when he forms a social unit with a life of its own. |

Plot Keywords:

High School Teacher | Vandalism | Fascism | Uniform | Gun

Awards:

3 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Jürgen Vogel	...	Rainer Wenger
Frederick Lau	...	Tim Stoltefuss
Max Riemelt	...	Marco
Jennifer Ulrich	...	Karo
Christiane Paul	...	Anke Wenger
Jacob Matschenz	...	Dennis
Cristina do Rego	...	Lisa
Elyas M'Barek	...	Sinan
Maximilian Vollmar	...	Bomber
Max Mauff	...	Kevin (as Maximilian Mauff)
Ferdinand Schmidt-Modrow	...	Ferdi
Tim Oliver Schultz	...	Jens
Amelie Kiefer	...	Mona
Fabian Preger	...	Kaschi
Odine Johne	...	Maja

Also Known As:

The Wave (USA)
A Onda (Brazil) (festival title) (Portugal) [pt]
A hullám (Hungary) [hu]
Bølgen (Denmark) [da]
Experiment 2 (Russia) [ru]
Fala (Poland) [pl]
L'onda (Italy) [it]
La ola (Argentina) [es]
La vague (France) [fr]
Nás vodca (Slovakia) [sk]
Nás vudce (Czech Republic) [cs]
Tehlikeli oyun (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
To kyma (Greece) [el]

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:12 | Czech Republic:12 | UK:15 | Ireland:16 | Argentina:16 | Netherlands:16 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Sweden:11 | Portugal:M/16 (Qualidade) | Portugal:M/16 | Finland:K-15 | Australia:MA

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany

Company:

Rat Pack Filmproduktion GmbH

Trivia:

Based on the novel "The Wave" by Todd Strasser (under the pen name Morton Rhue), a fictionalized account of the "Third Wave" teaching experiment by Ron Jones that took place in a Cubberley High School history class in Palo Alto, California in April 1967.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: (At 57:15) The teacher is formally called Rainer Wenger, although informally he uses his first name is Rainer, among his students initially and later his surname during the project, Wenger. One might think the principal would use his first name when talking to him, but in Germany when adult colleagues speak to each other, they use their last name when talking to each other, i.e. Herr Wenger.

Movie Connections:

Version of The Wave (1981) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Rock & Roll Queen

Fascinating movie about group dynamics

This movie underlines that man is a social creature. We naturally form groups, groups of friends, of people who like the same music etc. Especially when we are young, belonging to a group is important, it makes our identity, who we are -- as opposed to who everyone else is. And so the teacher in the movie uses what is naturally there, to teach his pupils about autocracy. It shows what happens when you stress that identity, when you stress the sameness, and thus also the otherness of those not belonging to the group. Eventually it shows how easy it is for one, for the group to slip, even without being aware of it. Autocracy isn't dead, it is alive and it is easy. This movie is a must see for everyone, but especially for the young.