Dec 14 2024 to Dec 14 2024 4:30 p.m.

EVENT HAS ENDED

Where

Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan Bangalore

716, Chinmaya Mission Hospital Road, First Stage, Indiranagar, Bengaluru 560038

Event Description

We invite you to The American Friend, directed by Wim Wenders, in our ongoing film series German Cinema in Focus, curated by Shivani.
We are currently showing a selection of films by Wim Wenders. This is the last of the four films in the sub category Director's Special.

Tom Ripley, a cunning American art dealer and forger living in Hamburg, befriends Jonathan Zimmermann, a modest and terminally ill picture framer. Upon learning Jonathan’s illness, Ripley manipulates him into becoming an assassin for a French gangster, Raoul Minot. Jonathan, desperate
to secure financial stability for his family, reluctantly agrees to commit murder and eventually becomes entangled in the criminal underworld.

Based on Patricia Highsmith’s novel Ripley’s Game, the film is a neo-noir thriller that explores themes of morality, deception, and the boundaries of friendship, culminating in a tense and morally ambiguous conclusion. The film is noted for its atmospheric brooding cinematography and existential undertones.

The American Friend (Der amerikanische Freund)
by Wim Wenders
1977 | 126 min. | col. | German & English with English subtitles

Wim Wenders is a renowned German filmmaker, playwright, author, and photographer, known for his influential work in contemporary cinema. Born on August 14, 1945, in Düsseldorf, Germany, Wenders initially studied medicine and philosophy before switching to film at the
University of Television and Film Munich.

Wenders is a leading figure in the New German Cinema movement of the 1970s. His early films, such as "Alice in the Cities" (1974) and "Kings of the Road" (1976), are noted for their meditative, road-movie style and exploration of existential themes. He gained international acclaim with films like "Paris, Texas" (1984), which won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, and "Wings of Desire" (1987). Wenders has also made significant contributions to documentary filmmaking, with works like "Buena Vista Social Club" (1999), “The Salt of theEarth” (2014), and “Tokyo-Ga” (1985).

Wenders' work is characterised by its emphasis on visual storytelling, often exploring themes of identity, memory, and the passage of time. His contributions to both narrative and documentary film have earned him numerous awards and a lasting legacy in the world of cinema.

Entry free!
18+
Stay on for the post-screening discussion.