Wings of Desire (Der Himmel Uber Berlin) (1987)

 

Himlen over Berlin

I am slowly becoming, if not a fan, then appreciative of the movies by Wim Wenders. There is a contemplativeness to them that is rare in other films as his movies dwell more on an idea, a tableau, if you will, than an actual plot. This was probably never more true than with “Der Himmel über Berlin” (or “Wings of Desire” as is its English title).

The idea in “Der Himmel über Berlin” is that there are angels walking unseen among us. They observe and listen to our thoughts, but they are unable to interfere, except maybe guide our thoughts with gentle nudging. The angels are cut off from the sensory input we get. Their vision is devoid of colours, the feel no physical impressions such as wind or cold or softness or pain for that matter. They are almost unfeeling themselves. Almost. They do sense that we sense, and they do feel a loss. A loss at not sharing these sensory inputs and a sadness for people subjected to them. The price of eternal life is a life of deprivation.

In the movie we follow two such angels, Damiel (Bruno Ganz) and Cassiel (Otto Sanders). They hover over their grey city and observe. Trivial things, important things, personal things. They have access to everything, but all this is also outside their reach. Through the bulk of the movie, we see them either on their own or together listening in on people. There is the old man reminiscing on what used to be, of a city now gone, young people wondering what to do with their lives, people thinking of work, people thinking about money and surprisingly many simply feeling lonely. Cassiel tries to save a young many from jumping off a roof but is impotent to save him.

Damiel has two contacts that particularly stand out. One is on a filmset in the ruins of Berlin, where a movie is made about shortly after the end of the war. Peter Falk is playing himself as an actor in the movie and we learn surprisingly that he used to be an angel who 25 years before took the plunge and became a human. The other is a trapeze artist in a circus, Marion (Solveig Dommartin), who is seeing her dream of being an artist crumple. Damiel is drawn to her, and she is instrumental in his decision to take the plunge and become human.

When the perspective changes from that of the angels to the human perspective, the grayscale turns to vibrant colours, showing us the difference between the flat, senseless world of the angels and the textured and deep world of humans. Berlin in November is a dreary, depressing looking place and so much more so in the eighties. I have been there a few times, it is not so far from Copenhagen, and even today it is not exactly a joyous, uplifting place to look at, but in that black and white colour, with ruins still around from the war, it looks extremely dismal.

The movie uses a lot of poetry by Rilke. Not that I am familiar with it, but it adds a flavour of something otherworldly as if we are watching something behind the curtain, which to some extent we are. It is also just one of the ton of symbols the movie juggles, some more blatantly than others, but balancing them so they do not get in the way of that idea which is presented. Berlin is a fallen angel with its horrendous past. People themselves are feeling around like children while weighted down like old people. It is a song of despair and hope, of death and birth and of finding that person you need.

I was surprised to suddenly see Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds taking a central role near the end. Then again, why not? His sensibilities fit the movie quite well. I guess I should not be half as surprised as learning that Peter Falk used to be an angel...

Whether it is “Paris, Texas”, “Der Himmel Über Berlin” or “Perfect Days”, there is this slow dwelling on a cinematic landscape where very little is happening, but small scenes that combine to tell a story of a condition, something almost static, until suddenly something happens that releases the story. I suppose that is a unique talent of Wim Wenders.

I would recommend this movie, but only if you are ready for this state.