Zwei Leben

In Norway, Katrine Evensen Myrdal (Juliane Köhler) is a middle-aged woman happily married with Navy Commander Bjarte Myrdal (Sven Nordin). Katrine loves her daughter Anne (Julia Bache-Wiig) that is a single mother; her granddaughter Turid; and her mother Ase Evensen (Liv Ullmann) that helps Anne to raise Turid. Katrine's father was a German occupation soldier during the World War II and Katrine was taken by the German government and raised in the Sachsen Orphanage in East Germany. At the age of 20, Katrine escapes from East Germany and comes to Norway to meet her mother.

In November 1990, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the German lawyer Sven Solbach (Ken Duken) seeks Katrine and her mother out to give the testimony in a trial against the Norwegian state on behalf of the war children. Katrine refuses to testify, but Ase accepts and turns the life of her daughter upside-down when Sven discloses hidden dark secrets from her life.

"Zwei Leben" is a spectacular German-Norwegian film with a credible story of espionage, drama, love and thriller based on true events unknown for great part of the world. The screenplay is very well written, disclosing the truth about the mysterious Katrine through flashbacks like a puzzle. The performances are top-notch, highlighting the fantastic German actress Juliane Köhler from "Aimée & Jaguar", "Nowhere in Africa" and "Downfall" among other great movies. It is different to see Liv Ullmann an old lady after so many movies by Ingmar Bergman. In the end, "Zwei Lebe" is a highly recommended movie with an engaging sad story. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Duas Vidas" ("Two Lives")

I expected a 'small' film, very Scandinavian and moody about not much of anything. Instead, one of the most intriguing and suspenseful espionage stories ever AND based on a true case! Beautifully scripted, crisply directed and Liv Ullmann deftly underplaying her role steals every scene she is in! The spycraft is top-rate and believable and the human elements, above all, make this endlessly fascinating. I am not easy to please when it comes to Cold War thrillers.

The central character is endlessly fascinating to think about. The way she lives a lie and yet really and truly loves and has a family. Seldom does a movie keep me thinking long afterwards as this did.

I stumbled across this whilst looking for German language films and although it's mostly in Norwegian, I still had to watch because the plot sounded fascinating.

I thought I had it all figured out from the beginning and that I knew exactly how it would end. I was wrong.

When dealing with conspiracies and far-fetched seeming events, the best way to go about it is with subtlety and understatement. Juliane Köhler as the lead 'Katrine', manages to portray the urgency, danger and horror of the situation whilst still being sympathetic. I honestly didn't know who to feel most sorry for by the end of it all.

The only criticism I have (and hence why not 10/10), is that I would have liked to have seen more of the family and how they subsequently dealt with the tragic revelations.

I'm very glad I watched this and it's an easy recommendation from me.

9/10

The story has 2 elements that I find intriguing: East Germany spy network, and the post 1945 healing of Europe. In this movie they deal with both topics (plus the human impact in one family), but I believe that it would be better if the film focused on one topic only. First of all, why was DDR interested in Norway? What kind of intelligence were they seeking? And what happened with all the Stasi operatives after reunification?

I felt like the movie did not delved deep into those topics

Sadly the plot falls apart. The more you understand what has happened, the less plausible it is.

The seaside, buildings, mountains, etc. make for gorgeous background.

The characters are portrayed with depth and sympathy. Each deals appropriately with the stresses that they are under, and you can understand their actions.

The plot moves a long at a good pace, with flashbacks becoming clearer as the movie progresses.

But sadly when all is revealed, the plot has more holes than Romeo and Juliet. Coincidences, unlucky timing, unrealistic actions by professionals, ... it has them all.