fabreneelawless I saw this film twice in Dublin. Once at the Dublin film festival and later in the Swan cinema, Rathmines when it came from the war museum in a special viewing. I thought the film was a fantastic piece of work and the acting was especially good. I felt the atmosphere of fear and terror in Berlin at the time was well depicted. More than anything, I feel that Brendon Gleeson deserves an Oscar for his acting and that he and Emma Thompson were super together. I told all my friends about it and picked Hans Fallada's book for our book club. Sadly, the film has not been on general release in Ireland and I wonder why, especially as Brendon Gleeson is Irish and much loved my film fans in Ireland. This is the best part he has ever played in my opinion. He is a busy and internationally known actor so please send this film to Ireland.

Steve B This is not a happy story. It is story that opens your eyes. We have talked about it a lot since. We felt like it was something that should be seen. I would recommend it for folks curious about that era and that place in time. It seems impossible now, but you know its not. Real life stories like this tell something more for me than the big picture story.

bob-the-movie-man Once again, World War II turns up another true story of quiet valour to turn into a motion picture. At a time when Trump is pontificating about so called "fake news", here is a timely tale from history which centres on the battle against genuinely fake news: the Nazi propaganda machine. After losing their only son in the French campaign, Berliners Otto (Brendan Gleeson,"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire") and Anna (Emma Thompson, "Saving Mr Banks") turn against the regime and in repeated acts of rebellion Otto laboriously hand writes subversive postcards to leave in office blocks around Berlin.Out to catch him is local police investigator Escherich (Daniel Brühl) but in an age before CCTV that's no easy task and with increasing SS pressure the stakes for Escherich steadily increase. For Otto and Anna, the stress is there but both are resigned to their fate: with their son stolen from them for an unjust cause they are an island of indifference in an unholy land. Both are 'alone in Berlin?After 70 years it still chills the blood to see German locations decked out in Nazi regalia, but one of the joys of this film is this rendering of life in wartime Berlin: starting with jubilation at German progress prior to D-Day and turning to despair and genuine danger as the tide turns towards 1945. In a pretty bleak film there are touches of black comedy now and then: Otto's carpentry company is being encouraged "by the Fuhrer" to double and triple their output… of coffins. More joy comes from the star turns of Gleeson and Thompson, both of who deliver on their emotionally challenging roles. Gleeson in particular makes a very believable German with a sour demeanour and a steely determination. But the star acting turn for me goes to the wonderful Daniel Brühl ("Rush") as the tormented police detective, bullied into an ethical corner by the SS. The finale of the film – whilst not seeming quite believable – makes for a nicely unexpected twist.Based on a novel by Hans Fallada, the lead writing credits for the piece are shared between Achim von Borries and the director Vincent Perez – in a rare directorial outing for the Swiss actor. The script exudes a melancholic gloom and at times expresses beautifully both the grief and love shared by this older couple. But some of the dialogue needs more work and we don't see enough of Thompson in the early part of the film where her motivations should be being developed. This rather comes down to a lack of focus by the director. While the primary story of the card distribution is slight, it is compelling and a detour into a sub-story about an old Jewish lodger living upstairs is unnecessary and detracts from the overall story arc. I would have far preferred if the running time had been a tight 90 minutes just focused on Otto's mission. One final comment on the script: did I mishear that Anna claimed to have a 6 year old child during an air raid scene? I know Emma Thompson looks great for her age, but…. I can't finish this without commending the beautiful piano score of Alexandre Desplat. From the first note I knew it was him – he has such a characteristic style – and his clever use of the score complements the film exquisitely. "Small" films like this tend to rather disappear into the woodwork for Oscar consideration, but here's a soundtrack that I think should be considered: (but what do I know… when "Nocturnal Animals" wasn't even nominated in one of the Oscar crimes of the century!).In summary, I found this a thoughtful and thought-provoking film, that – despite some of the mean reviews I've seen – I thought was well crafted and with excellent production design by Jean-Vincent Puzos ("Amour"). It will be particularly appreciated by older audiences looking for an untold story from the war, and by all lovers of fine acting performances by the three leads. (For the full graphical review please visit http://bob-the-movie-man.com. Thanks!).

Peter Pluymers "You're to blame. You and your damn war! You and your damn fuhrer!"There are countless films about the resistance during WWII. But I had never heard of a German resistance against the Nazi regime. I'm sure there were more German citizens who weren't set up with the affairs of the German Empire. Most likely they kept this to themselves out of fear for reprisals. Anna (Emma Thompson) and Otto Quangel (Brendan Gleeson), whose name was Hampel in real life, may have had an aversion to the regime in the first place because their son had to join the German army. That's beyond dispute. The day they received a letter with the news that their son was killed at the front, is a turning point for both. Anna starts mourning in a serene way, while Otto's rebellious nature takes over and his plan is to write compromising messages on postcards and leave them behind at random places in Berlin. In this way he's trying to make clear to others that the country they are living in, isn't such an ideal place. Even if there's only one person who starts a silent protest as well, Otto still will be convinced that he has succeeded in his plan. Just look at it as a revenge for the death of his son."Alone in Berlin" isn't exactly an action packed movie and progresses slowly. All you get to see the whole movie is how Otto writes down in a patiently way his protest lyrics on a postcard (with kid gloves and in a different style of writing), the callous way these two resistance fighters interact with each other and an investigating held by the young police inspector Escherich (Daniel Bruhl). Although I actually wondered which tactic the inspector had in mind so he could track down those who are responsible. All he did was looking endlessly at a city map of Berlin with a whole series of flags pinned on it. Each pin represented a found postcard. 285 Postcards, to be exact. And the only clue that Escherich has is the handwriting on the cards. A handwriting revealing certain characteristics of the writer. That's about it.So besides a subplot about an old Jewish neighbor who's taken care of by the Quangel's if needed, one can only witness their silent protest and their relationship as a long married couple. A marriage with no affection and passion anymore. Even the letter about the death of their son, elicits no signs of any emotion. Despite the superb acting, it was all pretty boring. Even the use of English with a ridiculous sounding German accent, felt forced. This was obviously a strategic move, so they could put two big names on the payroll. "Alone in Berlin" does show that not all citizens were ardent supporters of Nazi Germany, but this one-man action ultimately had no influence on the rise of Adolf Hitler as we've learned in history classes. Eventually it was nothing more than a voice in the wilderness. Had they used the needles that indicated the places where the postcards were found, and planted those in Hitler's ass, it would have been more painful than this admirable action.More reviews here : http://bit.ly/1KIdQMT