SUMMER REWATCH: The Good German discussion

Well, here we are, the week I've been dreading.  

I'm curious to hear what those who are watching it for the first time think.

I loved the book and enjoyed parts of the movie ,   

I didn't like it at the first time. I think I had to watch it two times or so and then I liked it. I liked the part when he spoke few sentence German. I watched the English version to hear his pronunciation.....One sentence was great the other when he said "kleines schiffchen" ("little boat"- when the young boy was playing with it) that was cute with a nice strong american accent hehehehe

Does somebody know where this was shot? Not sure if it was written somewhere here in the threads already. The movie plays in Berlin but don't think it was shot in Barbelsberg in Berlin at the time right?

Oh another question. I never understand why they called it "The good German" ? George is playing an American. Where does the title refer too?

I didn't like this one, watched it once and barely remember much.

Nicky80 wrote:Oh another question. I never understand why they called it "The good German" ? George is playing an American. Where does the title refer too?

Quite a lot if information is here......

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EG....

Title and theme

The film's title alludes to the notion of "a good German", one who ostensibly was not to blame for allowing Hitler to persecute the Jews and others, and who did not see the Holocaust as it occurred before his eyes.
In addition, the title is an allusion to the phrase common among soldiers of the Allied Powers during the invasion of Europe after D-Day, that "The only good German is a dead German" - and the consequences of this death are seed for all that follows in the story of the film.
Thematically, the film centers on guilt, and whether it is possible to survive the atrocities while being unaware of and not complicit in them.

Some of the scenes reminded me of the atmosphere
of The Third Man, a classic also filmed in black and white.
I think it's a "Marmite" type of film.....Like it or hate it....with probably no middle ground ?

What do others think ?

Btw....It was nice to see Toby Maquire in a serious role.

It was all shot in California.  No German locations.

I haven't re-watched it yet. I might. Didn't like it much the first time around.

Not that it's a bad movie. It has its moments. But it could have and should have been so much better. I think Soderbergh (sp?) lost his way on this one. It wasn't tense where it was supposed to be. The actors were allowed to be so subdued at times that it looked like they were just meandering through scenes, some of them critical. Just not a sense of urgency that a story like this needs. Mostly a waste of a good story and good actors, IMO. Everybody in it is capable of better. I put this one on Soderbergh, who accepted a so-so shooting script from an excellent writer, and then directed the actors into sleepwalking performances in a failed attempt at 'atmosphere.'

Thanks Joanna and Melbert for the info  

I think Soderbergh also took a wrong turn with the idea to make a 1940s film.  There's a lot of ACTING! if I remember correctly (still haven't rewatched it - I will though), as there would have been if the film had been made in the 40s.  Annoyed the bejeezus out of me.

Something silly I found distracting the first time through:  George holds a cigarette in several scenes, but never, ever smokes.  He always throws it aside as though he's JUST finished it.  At a certain point I thought, if he refused to smoke on screen, why not just take that character trait out of the script?

Clooney grew up working in tobacco fields. In his late teens, he took up smoking and continued to do so through his late 20's. A decision he regrets and has discussed in numerous interviews. He finally decided to quit when his favorite Uncle died after a long battle with lung cancer. Clooney's parents were non-smokers, although many of his Aunts and Uncles smoked.

However, I remember one interview where he stated that he NEVER smoked.  Bad George.

Where did the information come from about
him smoking during his younger years ?
I can't recall anything about that ?

Jo - Don't know where, but I do remember him saying in an interview, a long time ago, that he used to smoke but decided to quit. Sorry I can't be more helpful.

Ok thanks Lizzy.....I remember his references to
his Uncle George.
Our George looks so like him too.

Finally saw the movie today for the first time. (Thanks to Amazon the sound level was so low that I pratically sat on my computer and still missed half the dialog!) I liked a lot of things about this movie - the use of actual footage, shooting in black and white instead of color, the attempt to make a noir film - that was ambitious.

What I didn't like was the script. It didn't hold together for me. I kept thinking "What's the big deal with this guy they're chasing?" I know why they wanted him, but it just didn't seem to warrant all the mayhem. Too much atmosphere and too little story development. I guess by the time they got to the editing room in post it was too late to go back and fix it.

The acting was ok.All poor George had to do was get beat up and look confused  , But Cate Blanchett really carried the film for me. She was really the only main character worth watching, IMO. Also, I felt that Toby Maguire was too young for such a cynical part.

All in all, I didn't hate it but I think it could have been much better.

The sound for films etc on PC's or tablets etc
is always much better while using head phones.

A bit of useful trivia at bed time. Lol

agree Lizzy I felt the same about Toby Maguire...he was too young for this role. Looked a bit funny.