Escape from East Berlin

For many younger people today, they might have no idea what life was like during the occupation of Eastern Europe by the Soviets. Freedom was negligible and people did not have to right to live or go where they wanted. And, in Berlin, the city was divided into an East and West sector...and in the early 60s, the East German government put up a wall to deter folks from going to the West and freedom. And, to guarantee this, guard towers, machine guns and barbed wire were strung along the wall. And, many people died trying to sneak across or over or under the wall. This film concerns a group who are tunneling under the wall.

So is it any good? Yes...especially because it's a nice history lesson. My only complaint, and it's very minor, is that I didn't understand putting Don Murray in the lead...a German leading man would have made more sense. Still, it's well worth seeing.

Based on a true story and directed by Robert Siodmak, "Escape from East Berlin" is an uneven film about a real-life military chauffeur living in East Berlin (played by Don Murray) who, with the help of family and friends, digs a tunnel in order to escape to West Berlin.

It's probable that with several story changes, "Berlin Tunnel 21," made in 1981, is based on the same true story. I found that film far more suspenseful.

However, since the Siodmak film was made around the time that the wall was erected, it captures the atmosphere better. The film begins with a little bit of history, too, which would be interesting to those new to the material.

It looks as if "Escape from East Berlin" was made on a shoestring budget, as some of it seems rushed, and the subplot of Christine Kaufman, as a young woman who hides in the Schroder household and wants to escape with them, seems to have been dropped. Unless I missed it, there is no follow-up as far as her family.

Don Murray heads a German cast that includes Werner Klemperer, and the film was done on location in Berlin. Murray smartly just hints at an accent. Of course one assumes all of these people are actually speaking German.

Certainly this film captures the claustrophobia of those trapped behind the wall and the poor conditions under which they had to live. Definitely worth seeing, though for a nail-biting version of the same story, check out "Berlin Tunnel 21."

Robert Siodmak had nothing to prove when he made "Escape from East Berlin".Maybe his film ,although inspired by real facts ,looks more like fiction,but he knew what he was talking about: Driven away from his land by Goebbels after "Brennendes Geheimnis " in 1933, he took refuge in France where he made at least two classics ("Mollenard" and "Piège" ),then in America where he reached peaks of films noirs ("cry of the city" "spiral staircase" "criss cross" ....).When he returned to Germany ,he depicted his country after the war ("die Ratten" ) without indulgence.Another movie made in France ("L'Affaire Nina B") dealt with Nazi criminals .

Siomak's genius as a film noir past master can still be felt in "escape...." ,notably in the first scenes where the characters seem to be buried alive in walls of stone and barbed wire.A short prologue with a voice over tells us so: "these men and women have done nothing and they are prisoners..."Don Murray looks too American but it's not a big problem.Since 1989,the Wall of shame has fortunately become a thing of the past.Siomak's movie was one of the first thrusts.

Based on the true story of an actual escape under the Berlin Wall, "Escape Form East Berlin" is a sometimes slow moving film that does manage to capture a bit of the atmosphere of the time. It was, of course, the height of the Cold War, with the Communists having built a wall dividing the Soviet occupied East Berlin, from the rest of the city, which was occupied by the British, French and Americans. The viewer certainly gets the point that paranoia is called for in East Berlin. There are guards and soldiers everywhere, and people have to be careful who they talk to and what they talk about. Even one's own family isn't necessarily going to keep confidences. The opening scenes are of an attempt to smash a truck through the wall, and the fate of the driver leaves us with no doubt that the Communist guards were quite willing to kill to ensure that no one escaped their socialist paradise. That atmosphere was captured well, although there was surprisingly little direct political commentary, aside from a few sarcastic comments on the lips of some of the characters about the "benefits" of a planned economy.

The movie mostly revolves around the effort to build a tunnel from the basement of a house near the Wall to the West. The main character is Kurt (Don Murray) - the driver to an East German major and his wife - who befriends the sister of the man killed in the opening escape attempt, and who (not realizing that her brother is dead) wants to join him in the west. Others find out about the plan and join in, and eventually there are 28 people who want to make their way through the tunnel. The last few minutes of the movie are quite suspenseful, as East German authorities try desperately to stop the escape attempt.

This is certainly a propaganda film. That much is obvious. It's also obvious that it was made pretty quickly. The actual escape on which it's based had only taken place a few months before the movie had its debut. Aside from Murray and Werner Klemperer, most of the cast are better known for their work in European films. It's a little bit uneven, but it's also an interesting portrayal of life behind the Berlin Wall. (6/10)

I watched the Berlin Wall come down in 1989. This film brings back some haunting memories. The despair of people realizing that they are trapped in the cage called East Berlin. And what we know about the Stasi--the East German secret police--makes me cringe realizing how everybody was spied upon.

Yes, the movie has a happy ending. But, while 28 people found freedom through the tunnel, think of those who lived out their days behind the wall.