Berlin Blues

Berlin Blues is set in West Berlin in 1989, in the Kreuzberg district known as SO 36, a neighbourhood largely cut off from the rest of the city by the Wall for nearly three decades. Frank Lehmann, a barman approaching thirty, is content with his unhurried life of drinking, drifting, and keeping everything beyond his immediate surroundings at arm's length. Friends and regulars call him Herr Lehmann. His routine is shaken when he becomes involved with Katrin, a cook, while his best friend Karl, an artist, begins behaving oddly, and his parents arrive for a visit. Across the Wall, political tensions are building.

The film was directed by Leander Haußmann, following his 1999 debut Sonnenallee and preceding NVA in 2005. Sven Regener wrote the screenplay, and Claus Boje produced. Christian Ulmen plays Herr Lehmann, with Katja Danowski as Katrin and Detlev Buck as Karl. The cast runs to twenty-six credited performers. Made for roughly six million dollars, it is a German comedy-drama of about 105 minutes. On IMDb it holds a 7.1 rating from around 7,900 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.8 from about 130 votes, indicating a modest but clearly favourable response from viewers.