Post-Wall German Cinema and National History: Utopianism and Dissent

[S]ituates itself at the heart of contemporary debates about recent German history . . . . O’Brien’s thematic and contextualist approach allows for an inclusive inquiry that overcomes binary models . . . . [W]ith its analyses of previously unexplored films, solidly rooted with a diverse set of critical responses . . . the book does great service to contemporary German film studies and offers some very suggestive socio-political insights. FILM CRITICISM

Examining how Germany’s divided past shaped its present, this study focuses on contemporary films that look back to the legacy of the postwar period. O’Brien argues that utopianism and dissent, as practiced in both German states, have emerged as a model for imagining German identity in the present. . . . [H]er close readings of 12 significant films are well written and accessible, providing a convincing overview of how contemporary cinema engages with Germany’s contested past. Recommended. CHOICE

16 powerfully expressive screenshots awake interest, a detailed index . . . makes locating things easy, the copious notes free up the discourse, which offers a convincing analysis of the corpus of the “history film” genre. Looking back at the Wende, the trauma of the Wall, and the Red Army Faction, the films appear as seismographs of the time. The recalling of then-topical conflicts opens broad perspectives. GERMANISTIK