Film Review: Auf der anderen Seite (The Edge of Heaven)
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Kenneth Cromer The Edge of Heaven (2007), directed by German-Turkish director Fatih Akın, is an award-winning German-Turkish film that exemplifies the convergence of German and Turkish cultures in many regards, including heritage, language and lifestyle. Beyond the masterfully crafted intersecting storylines, an […]
Film Rezension: “Gegen die Wand”
As part of their work in the Multicultural Germany undergraduate seminar at UC Berkeley, students in the course have reviewed recent German films relating in various ways to topics of migration, multiculturalism, and contemporary German identity. Julia Schroeder reviewed Fatih Akin’s 2004 film “Gegen die Wand” (Head-On): Der Film “Gegen die Wand” von Fatih Akin ist eine […]
“Gegen die Wand” Rezension von Julia Schroeder
Der Film “Gegen die Wand” von Fatih Akin ist eine dramatische und brutale Tragikomödie und gleichzeitig eine zärtliche Liebesgeschichte über zwei verzweifelte, leidenschaftliche Menschen, die sich nach ihrem Selbstmordversuch, (er fährt gegen die Wand und sie schneidet sich die Pulsadern auf) in der Psychiatrie einer Klinik in Hamburg begegnen. Doch das ist erst der Anfang […]
“Gegen die Wand” Film Review by Inga Keller
Within an initially hyperbolic narrative, farfetched in its extreme situations, Gegen die Wand (Head-On) manages to insert many small insights into the Turkish community living in Germany, characterizing the difficulty immigrants have in defining themselves when they no longer feel Turkish but don’t completely identify with being German. In 2004 it was the winner of […]
Film Review: “Brudermord” (Fratricide)
As part of the Multicultural Germany undergraduate seminar at UC Berkeley, students reviewed recent German films relating in various ways to topics of migration, multiculturalism, and contemporary German identity. Melissa Carlson reviewed Yilmaz Arslan’s 2005 film “Brudermord”: Fratricide is a drama with moments of extreme violence. The movie follows the story of two young Kurdish refugees who […]
Wut (Rage)
Der Teenager Felix Laub (Robert Höller) stammt aus wohlhabendem Hause und hat zum türkischstämmigen Can (Oktay Özdemir) ein zwiespältiges Verhältnis: Obwohl Felix von Can und seiner Gang drangsaliert wird, kauft er ihm gelegentlich eine Portion Marihana ab. Eines Tages geht Felix mit neuen Turnschuhen auf die Straße, die ihm prompt von Cans Bande ausgezogen werden. […]
Multicultural Germany Class: Week 3, After Reunification
This post is part of a series in which students reflect on their discussions in the UC Berkeley undergraduate seminar “Multicultural Germany.” This week’s summary is by Ying Ruan: After the reunification of East and West Germany in 1990, a large influx of foreigners, who were let in due to changes in immigration policies, lead […]
Spiegel Article on Everyday Racism in Germany, Prompted by Asylum Debates
In the curent issue of der Spiegel (Sept. 16, 2013), 15 people of foreign descent are interviewed about their daily experiences with racism in Germany. The full text of the article is available in English. A partial preview with photographs is available in German.
Follow-up on Cultural Memory in France and Bosnia
On April 24, the Moving Europe project continued with two presentations on cultural memory, both of which raised questions dealing with national identity and absences within representations of the past.
Autobiography by Ghanaian-born German Soccer Player Gerald Asamoah
Gerald Asamoah’s autobiography, Dieser Weg wird kein leichter sein tells of his childhood in Ghana, his move to Germany at age twelve, and his career as a professional soccer player, during which he encountered instances of intense racism.