SCFZ

Sooo, this thread is for each member listing his favorite films from any of the many German countries over the last 120 or 130 years, be it the German Democratic Republic, the German Empire (up to 1918) or whatever else.

not included are Austria, Austria-Hungary, Switzerland, or films made in the German language in other countries.

You can list up to 100 films.

THIS IS NOT A POLL AND NO POLLING IS ALLOWED IN THIS THREAD.

You can update and expand and edit your list whenever you wish in whichever way you wish.

This thread is ongoing and has no time-limit.

Ich möchte kein mann sein "I Don't Want to Be a Man"
Ernst Lubitsch, Germany 1918


Sumurun
Ernst Lubitsch, Germany 1920
Die Carmen von St. Pauli "Docks of Hamburg"
Erich Waschneck, Germany 1928
Melodie des Herzens
Hanns Schwarz, Germany 1929


Das Cabinet des Dr. Larifari "The Cabinet of Dr. Larifari"
Robert Wohlmuth, Germany 1930
Ihre Majestät die Liebe "Her Majesty Love"
Joe May, Germany 1930
Vampyr - Der Traum des Allan Grey "Vampyr"
Carl Theodor Dreyer, Germany/France 1931
Ich bei Tag und du bei Nacht "I by Day, You by Night"
Ludwig Berger, Germany 1932
Anna und Elisabeth "Anna and Elizabeth"
Frank Wisbar, Germany 1933
Schleppzug M 17 "Tugboat M 17"
Heinrich George/Werner Hochbaum, Germany 1933
Heinz im Mond
Robert Adolf Stemmle, Germany 1934
Regine
Erich Waschneck, Germany 1934
Das Mädchen vom Moorhof "The Girl from the Marsh Croft"
Detlef Sierck, Germany 1935
Inkognito "Incognito"
Richard Schneider-Edenkoben, Germany 1936
Schlußakkord "The Final Chord"
Detlef Sierck, Germany 1936
Condottieri "Giovanni de Medici: The Leader"
Luis Trenker/Werner Klingler, Germany/Italy 1937
Verwehte Spuren "Covered Tracks"
Veit Harlan, Germany 1937
Mannesmann
Walter Ruttmann, Germany 1938
Fräulein
Erich Waschneck, Germany 1939


Frau nach Maß
Helmut Käutner, Germany 1940
Michelangelo
Curt Oertel, Germany/Switzerland 1940
Die goldene Stadt "The Golden CIty"
Veit Harlan, Germany 1942
Großstadtmelodie "Melody of a Great City"
Wolfgang Liebeneiner, Germany 1943
Der verzauberte Tag
Peter Pewas, Germany 1944
Träumerei
Harald Braun, Germany 1944
Solistin Anna Alt
Werner Klingler, Germany 1945
Der Ruf "The Last Illusion"
Josef von Báky, West Germany 1949
Verspieltes Leben
Kurt Meisel, West Germany 1949


Dr. Holl
Rolf Hansen, West Germany 1951
Illusion in Moll "Illusion in a Minor Key"
Rudolf Jugert, West Germany 1952
Pünktchen und Anton "Punktchen and Anton"
Thomas Engel, West Germany/Austria 1953
Charleys Tante "Charley's Aunt"
Hans Quest, West Germany 1956
Ein Mädchen aus Flandern "The Girl from Flanders"
Helmut Käutner, West Germany 1956
Der gläserne Turm "The Glass Tower"
Harald Braun, West Germany 1957
Der Wilderer vom Silberwald
Otto Meyer, West Germany 1957
Monpti
Helmut Käutner, West Germany 1957
Der Tiger von Eschnapur "The Tiger of Eschnapur"
Fritz Lang, West Germany/Italy/France 1958
Das Totenschiff "Ship of the Dead"
Georg Tressler, West Germany/Mexico 1959
Die Nackte und der Satan "The Head"
Victor Trivas, West Germany 1959
Mädchen für die Mambo-Bar "Girls for the Mambo-Bar"
Wolfgang Glück, West Germany 1959


Der Satan lockt mit Liebe "Satan Tempts with Love"
Rudolf Jugert, West Germany 1960
Eheinstitut Aurora "Matrimonial Agency Aurora"
Wolfgang Schleif, West Germany 1962
Holiday in St. Tropez
Ernst Hofbauer, West Germany 1964
in side out
George Moorse, West Germany 1964
Kennwort... Reiher "The River Line"
Rudolf Jugert, West Germany 1964
Karla
Herrmann Zschoche, East Germany 1965
Mädchen Mädchen "Girls, Girls"
Roger Fritz, West Germany 1966
Rasthaus der grausamen Puppen "Inn of the Gruesome Dolls"
Rolf Olsen, West Germany/Italy
Heisses Pflaster Köln
Ernst Hofbauer, West Germany 1967
Vulkan der höllischen Triebe
Peter Häuser, West Germany 1967
Wenn es Nacht wird auf der Reeperbahn "When Night Falls on the Reeperbahn"
Rolf Olsen, West Germany 1967
Chronik der Anna Magdalena Bach "The Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach"
Danièle Huillet/Jean-Marie Straub, West Germany/Italy 1968
Der Griller
George Moorse, West Germany 1968
Detektive
Rudolf Thome, West Germany 1968
Häschen in der Grube "Rabbit in the Pit"
Roger Fritz, West Germany 1968
Neun Leben hat die Katze "The Cat Has Nine Lives"
Ula Stöckl, West Germany 1968
Sex und noch nicht 16
Peter Baumgartner, West Germany 1968
Sommersprossen "Freckles"
Helmut Förnbacher, West Germany/Italy 1968
Zuckerbrot und Peitsche "Sugar Bread and Whip"
Marrran Gosov, West Germany 1968
Deine Zärtlichkeiten
Peter Schamoni, West Germany 1969
Mir hat es immer Spaß gemacht "How Did a Nice Girl Like You Get Into This Business?"
Will Tremper, West Germany 1969
Rote Sonne "Red Sun"
Rudolf Thome, West Germany 1969


Deadlock
Roland Klick, West Germany 1970
Versuchung im Sommerwind "Temptation in the Summer Wind"
Rolf Thiele, West Germany 1972
Wonnekloß
Marran Gosov, West Germany 1972
Der wilde Blonde mit der heißen Maschine "Dandelions"
Adrian Hoven, West Germany 1974
Es war nicht die Nachtigall... "Julia"
Sigi Rothemund, West Germany 1974
Der zweite Frühling "Second Spring"
Ulli Lommel, West germany/Italy 1975
Laß jucken, Kumpel 5
Franz Marischka, West Germany 1975
Monika und die Sechzehnjährigen
Charly Steinberger, West Germany 1975
Brennende Langeweile "Bored Teenagers"
Wolfgang Büld, West Germany 1978
Melody in Love
Hubert Frank, West Germany 1978
Rheingold "Rhinegold"
Niklaus Schilling, West Germany 1978
Von Liebe ganz zu schweigen
Michael Bückner, West Germany 1978
Dir muss er ja nicht gefallen
Franz Stepan, West Germany 1979
Maria - Nur die Nacht war Zeuge
Ernst Hofbauer, West Germany/Italy 1979


Brandmale
George Moorse, West Germany 1982
Das zweite Gesicht "The Second Face"
Dominik Graf, West Germany 1982
Gib Gas - Ich will Spaß "Hangin' Out"
Wolfgang Büld, West Germany 1982
Das Gold der Liebe "The Gold of Love"
Eckhart Schmidt, West Germany 1983
Die flambierte Frau "A Woman in Flames"
Robert van Ackeren, West Germany 1983
Klassenverhältnisse "Class Relations"
Danièle Huillet/Jean-Marie Straub, West Germany/France 1983
Baby
Uwe Frießner, West Germany 1984
Alpha City
Eckhart Schmidt, West Germany 1985
Der Bulle & das Mädchen "The Cop and the Girl"
Peter Keglevic, West Germany/Austria 1985
Egomania - Insel ohne Hoffnung
Christoph Schlingensief, West Germany 1986
Die Kali-Filme
Birgit Hein/Wilhelm Hein, West Germany 1988
Die Katze "The Cat"
Dominik Graf, West Germany 1988


Unsichtbare Tage
Eva Hiller, Germany 1991
Die Sieger "The Invincibles"
Dominik Graf, Germany 1994
Achterbahn der Gefühle
Josef Kluger, Germany 1995
Der Skorpion "The Scorpion"
Dominik Graf, Germany 1997


L'amour, l'argent, l'amour "Love, Money, Love"
Philip Gröning, Germany/Switzerland/France 2000
Der Felsen "A Map of the Heart"
Dominik Graf, Germany 2001
Bungalow
Ulrich Köhler, Germany 2002
Kalter Frühling "Cold Spring"
Dominik Graf, Germany 2003
Serge Rippenanker
Rainer Knepperges, Germany 2008
Pink
Rudolf Thome, Germany 2009


Im Schatten "In the Shadows"
Thomas Arslan, Germany 2010
Cassandras Warnung
Dominik Graf, Germany 2011
Etwas besseres als den Tod "Beats Being Dead"
Christian Petzold, Germany 2011
Nur ein Tag in Berlin "Only One Day in Berlin"
Malte Wirtz, Germany 2018


------

Directors with multiple films

Dominik Graf: 7
Erich Waschneck: 3
Ernst Hofbauer: 3
George Moorse. 3
Helmut Käutner: 3
Rudolf Jugert: 3
Rudolf Thome: 3
Danièle Huillet: 2
Detlef Sierck: 2
Eckhart Schmidt: 2
Ernst Lubitsch: 2
Harald Braun: 2
Jean-Marie Straub: 2
Marran Gosov: 2
Roger Fritz: 2
Rolf Olsen: 2
Veit Harlan: 2
Wolfgang Büld: 2

Great idea! I was just thinking of making such a list myself. This year I hope to expand my knowledge of German cinema in the first half of the 20th century: slowly but surely making my way through Kracauer's From Caligari to Hitler alongside viewings, and then I'll do the same with Eisner's Haunted Screen.

I have a measly 15 at the moment. Will share a list when I hit 25 German favs (let's get viewing!)

Grrrreat! Looking forward to your list!
And I wish you all the best in exploring the vast riches of German film history!

I've never read any book by Eisner or Kracauer myself, but I've discovered some 400+ German favorites over the last decade. It was a wonderful journey - which still continues: last week I saw the marvelous "Schlussakkord" (1936) by Detlef Sierck, and I'm still trying to recover from its impact. It will probably end up on my updated Top 100, when I make a new one.

I'll stop at 50 for now. Might extend it a bit further later.

1. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Wiene, 1920)
2. Die Sehnsucht der Veronika Voss (Fassbinder, 1982)
3. Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (Herzog, 1979)
4. Querelle (Fassbinder, 1982)
5. Vampyr (Dreyer, 1932)
6. Heart of Glass (Herzog, 1976)
7. Chinese Roulette (Fassbinder, 1976)
8. Nosferatu: A Symphony of Terror (Murnau, 1922)
9. The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (Fassbinder, 1972)
10. Martha (Fassbinder, 1974)
11. Aguirre, the Wrath of God (Herzog, 1972)
12. Whity (Fassbinder, 1971)
13. Von Morgens bis Mitternacht (Martin, 1920)
14. World on a Wire (Fassbinder, 1973)
15. Toni Erdmann (Ade, 2016)
16. Metropolis (Lang, 1927)
17. Fata Morgana (Herzog, 1971)
18. Fear of Fear (Fassbinder, 1975)
19. Run Lola Run (Tykwer, 1998)
20. Dorian Gray in the Mirror of the Boulevard Press (Ottinger, 1984)
21. Warning Shadows (Robison, 1923)
22. Tuvalu (Helmer, 1999)
23. Fitzcarraldo (Herzog, 1982)
24. Waxworks (Leni, 1924)
25. Portrait of a Drinking Woman (Ottinger, 1979)
26. Johanna d'Arc of Mongolia (Ottinger, 1989)
27. Opfergang (Harlan, 1944)
28. Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach (Straub'Huillet, 1968)
29. The Adventures of Prince Achmed (Reiniger, 1926)
30. Ferryman Maria (Wisbar, 1936)
31. Signs of Life (Herzog, 1968)
32. Secrets of a Soul (Pabst, 1926)
33. Raskolnikow (Wiene, 1923)
34. Der müde Tod (Lang, 1921)
35. The Golem: How He Came Into the World (Wegener, 1920)
36. The Student of Prague (Galeen, 1926)
37. Echoes from a Somber Empire (Herzog, 1990)
38. Faust (Murnau, 1926)
39. Lessons of Darkness (Herzog, 1992)
40. Herdsmen of the Sun (Herzog, 1989)
41. Despair (Fassbinder, 1978)
42. Bremer Freiheit (Fassbinder, 1972)
43. Satan's Brew (Fassbinder, 1976)
44. Machorka-Muff (Straub/Huillet, 1963)
45. Yella (Petzold, 2007)
46. Lili Marleen (Fassbinder, 1981)
47. Phoenix (Petzold, 2014)
48. M (Lang, 1931)
49. The Great Ecstasy of the Sculptor Steiner (Herzog, 1974)
50. The Oyster Princess (Lubitsch, 1919)

Big fan of German cinema, luckily I already had a top 100 list at hand. https://letterboxd.com/greennui/list/krautwerk/

Behindert (Stephen Dwoskin, 1974)
Im Lauf der Zeit (Wim Wenders, 1976)
Acht Stunden sind kein Tag (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1972)
Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes (Werner Herzog, 1972)
Große Freiheit Nr. 7 (Helmut Käutner, 1944)
Unter den Brücken (Helmut Käutner, 1946)
Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter (Wim Wenders, 1972)
Der Fan (Eckhart Schmidt, 1982)
Transit (Christian Petzold, 2018)
Götter der Pest (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1970)

Alice in den Städten (Wim Wenders, 1974)
Der Tod der Maria Malibran (Werner Schroeter, 1972)
Welt am Draht (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1973)
Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (Uli Edel, 1981)
Abendland (Fred Kelemen, 1999)
Tagebuch einer Verlorenen (G. W. Pabst, 1929)
Mädchen in Uniform (Leontine Sagan/Carl Froelich, 1931)
Baal (Volker Schlöndorff, 1970)
Der Tiger von Eschnapur (Fritz Lang, 1959)
Das indische Grabmal (Fritz Lang, 1959)

Willow Springs (Werner Schroeter, 1973)
Satansbraten (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1976)
Warnung vor einer heiligen Nutte (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1971)
Warum läuft Herr R. Amok (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1970)
Jenseits der Straße - Eine Tragödie des Alltags (Leo Mittler, 1929)
Der Fangschuß (Volker Schlöndorff, 1976)
Romanze in Moll (Helmut Käutner, 1943)
Dar Ghorbat (Sohrab Shahid Saless, 1975)
Tagebuch eines Liebenden (Sohrab Shahid Saless, 1977)
München-Berlin Wanderung (Oskar Fishinger, 1927)

Hynningen (Werner Nekes, 1984)
Das triadische Ballett (Various, 1970)
Alaska (Dore O., 1969)
Razzia in St. Pauli (Werner Hochbaum, 1932)
Morgen beginnt das Leben (Werner Hochbaum, 1933)
Studien zum Untergang des Abendlands (Klaus Wyborny, 2010)
Die Zärtlichkeit der Wölfe (Ulli Lommel, 1973)
Frau im Mond (Fritz Lang, 1929)
Falsche Bewegung (Wim Wenders, 1975)
Das Stahltier (Willy Zielke, 1935)

Die dritte Generation (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1979)
Die Sehnsucht der Veronika Voss (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1982)
Händler der vier Jahreszeiten (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1972)
Die bitteren Tränen der Petra von Kant (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1972)
Angst vor der Angst (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1975)
Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum (Volker Schlöndorff/Margarethe von Trotta, 1975)
Der Stand der Dinge (Wim Wenders, 1982)
Wir machen Musik (Helmut Käutner, 1942)
Winifred Wagner und die Geschichte des Hauses Wahnfried von 1914-1975 (Hans-Jürgen Syberberg, 1976)
Hitler, ein Film aus Deutschland (Hans-Jürgen Syberberg, 1977)

Der amerikanische Freund (Wim Wenders, 1977)
Mephisto (István Szabó, 1981)
Metropolis (Fritz Lang, 1927)
Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (F.W. Murnau, 1922)
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (Werner Herzog, 1979)
Die Blechtrommel (Volker Schlöndorff, 1979)
Stroszek (Werner Herzog, 1977)
Jeder für sich und Gott gegen alle (Werner Herzog, 1974)
Gegen die Wand (Fatih Akin, 2004)
Toni Erdmann (Maren Ade, 2016)

Chinesisches Roulette (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1976)
Lola (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1981)
Angst essen Seele auf (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1974)
In einem Jahr mit 13 Monden (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1978)
Berlin Alexanderplatz (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1980)
Der heilige Berg (Arnold Fanck, 1926)
Zum Vergleich (Harun Farocki, 2009)
Wachsexperimente (Oskar Fischinger, 1927)
Makimono (Werner Nekes, 1974)
T-Wo-Men (Werner Nekes, 1972)

Ludwig - Requiem für einen jungfräulichen König (Hans-Jürgen Syberberg, 1972)
Mutter Krausens Fahrt ins Glück (Phil Jutzi, 1929)
Mutter Küsters' Fahrt zum Himmel (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1975)
Fußball wie noch nie (Hellmuth Costard, 1971)
Romy - Portrait eines Gesichts (Hans-Jürgen Syberberg, 1967)
Der lachende Mann - Bekenntnisse eines Mörders (Walter Heynowski/Gerhard Scheumann, 1966)
Der Bomberpilot (Werner Schroeter, 1970)
Ich will doch nur, daß ihr mich liebt (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1976)
Der junge Törless (Volker Schlöndorff, 1966)
Deadlock (Roland Klick, 1970)

Die bleierne Zeit (Margarethe von Trotta, 1981)
Faust: Eine deutsche Volkssage (F.W. Murnau, 1926)
Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari (Robert Wiene, 1920)
Die Nibelungen: Siegfried (Fritz Lang, 1924)
Die Nibelungen: Kriemhilds Rache (Fritz Lang, 1924)
Die 3 Groschen-Oper (G. W. Pabst, 1931)
Bildnis einer Trinkerin (Ulrike Ottinger, 1979)
Die Büchse der Pandora (G. W. Pabst, 1929)
Marseille (Angela Schanelec, 2004)
Die große Ekstase des Bildschnitzers Steiner (Werner Herzog, 1974)

Die Bergkatze (Ernst Lubitsch, 1921)
Kameradschaft (G. W. Pabst, 1931)
Sylvester (Lupu Pick, 1924)
Fährmann Maria (Frank Wisbar, 1936)
Sie tötete in Ekstase (Jesus Franco, 1971)
Malina (Werner Schroeter, 1991)
Der blaue Engel (Josef von Sternberg, 1930)
Viele kamen vorbei (Peter Pewas, 1956)
31/75: Asyl (Kurt Kren, 1975)
Eisenbahn (Lutz Mommartz, 1967)

these are from german-speaking countries (ie austria as well), which i'm guessing is fine?

die puppe/the doll (lubitsch)
anders als die anderen/different from the others (oswald)
die austernprinzessin/the oyster princess (lubitsch)
die spinnen - 1. teil/the spiders 1 (lang)
die spinnen - 2. teil/the spiders 2 (lang)
genuine (wiene)
der golem, wie er in der welt kam/the golem (wegener/boese)
kohlheisels töchter/kohlheisel's daughters (lubitsch)
die bergkatze/the wildcat (lubitsch)
der gang in die nacht/journey into the night (murnau)

schloß vogelöd/the haunted castle (murnau)
scherben/shattered (pick)
das indische grabmal - 1. teil/the indian tomb 1 (may)
das indische grabmal - 2. teil/the indian tomb 2 (may)
hintertreppe/the back stairs (leni/jessner)
der brennende acker/the burning soil (murnau)
nosferatu (murnau)
die geierwally/wally of the vultures (dupont)
schatten/warning shadows (robison)
das alte gesetz/the ancient law (dupont)

die nibelungen, siegfried (lang)
die nibelungen, kriemhilds rache/kriemhild's revenge (lang)
sylvester (pick)
orlacs hände/the hands of orlac (wiene)
wunder der schöpfung/our heavenly bodies (kornblum)
die freudlose gasse/the joyless street (pabst)
varieté (dupont)
faust (murnau)
die liebe der jeanne ney/the love of jeanne ney (pabst)
cafe elektric (ucicky)

spione/spies (lang)
die büchse der pandora/pandora's box (pabst)
asphalt (may)
brüder/brothers (hochbaum)
tagebuch einer verlorenen/diary of a lost girl (pabst)
menschen am sonntag (ulmer/zinnemann/etc)
der blaue engel (sternberg)
3-groschen oper/threepenny opera (pabst)
m (lang)
kameradschaft (pabst)

mädschen in uniform (froelich/sagan)
vampyr (dreyer)
razzia in sankt pauli/raid in st. pauli (hochbaum)
schleppzug m 17/tugboat m 17 (george/hochbaum)
liebelei (ophüls)
sonnenstrahl/ray of sunlight (fejös)
amphitryon (schünzel)
der zerbrochene krug/the broken jug (jannings/ucicky)
wir machen musik/we make music (käutner)
große freiheit nr. 7/great freedom, no. 7 (käutner)

unter den brücken/under the bridges (käutner)
der tiger von eschnapur/the tiger of eschnapur (lang)
das indische grabmal/the indian tomb (lang)
die parallelstraße/the parallel street (khittl)
der junge törless/young törless (schlöndorff)
chronik der anna magdalena bach/chronicle of anna magdalena bach (straub/huillet)
katzelmacher (fassbinder)
michael kohlhass (schlöndorff)
scarabea (syberberg)
götter der pest/gods of the plague (fassbinder)

othon (straub/huillet)
händler der vier jahreszeiten/merchant of four seasons (fassbinder)
rio das mortes (fassbinder)
whity (fassbinder)
der tod der maria malabran/the death of maria malabran (schroeter)
aguirre der zorn gottes/aguirre the wrath of god (herzog)
ludwig (syberberg)
willi tobler und der untergang der 6. flötte/willi tobler (kluge)
gelegenheitsarbeit einer sklavin/part-time work of a domestic slave (kluge)
wildwechsel/jail bait (fassbinder)

willow springs (schroeter)
effi briest (fassbinder)
jeder für sich und gott gegen alle/kasper hauser (herzog)
karl may (syberberg)
martha (fassbinder)
in gefahr und größter not.../in danger and dire distress the middle road leads to death (kluge)
angst vor der angst/fear of fear (fassbinder)
moses und aron (straub/huillet)
satansbraten/satan's brew (fassbinder)
der fangschlüß/coup de grâce (schlöndorff)

madame x: eine absolute herrscherin/madame x: an absolute ruler (ottinger)
die ehe der maria braun/the marriage of maria braun (fassbinder)
nosferatu (herzog)
die blechtrommel/the tin drum (schlöndorff)
woyzeck (herzog)
fitzcarraldo (herzog)
zu früh, zu spät/too early, too late (straub/huillet)
der rechte weg/the right way (fischli/weiss)
der tod des empedokles/the death of empedocles (straub/huillet)
johanna d'arc of mongolia (ottinger)

antigone (straub/huillet)
maries lied/mary's song (von glasow)
lothringen! (straub/huillet)
film ist 1-6 (deutsch)
die große stille/into great silence (gröning)
das weisse band/the white ribbon (haneke)
alle anderen/everyone else (ade)
film ist a girl and a gun (deutsch)
gold (arslan)
toni erdmann (ade)

brian d wrote: ↑Thu Mar 12, 2020 3:57 pm these are from german-speaking countries (ie austria as well), which i'm guessing is fine?

Sorry, no Austrian or Swiss films, or films in the German language from other countries,
For this we can make an Austrian poll or such.

IÄve updtaed my Top 100 above.

It was very difficult, and about 20 films could have been replaced by 20 others, cause at some point you just love many films about equally, but I got to a point where I was thinking about an outstanding favorite movie like Phoenix (Petzold, 2014) and comparing it with each film on the list, and not thinking it better than the ones already included. So that was when I said this Top 100 looks about right.

And it's great to see so many (and such long!) lists already.
It seems interest in German cinema on SCFZ is bigger than I thought.

For a long time German cinema was my main interest, thanks to Werner Herzog and to The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, which started it all. One of my goals was to see every film mentioned in The Haunted Screen. Strangely I resisted looking at Fassbinder's films for a few years, thinking no modern German director could be as good as Herzog, but in 1997 a huge Fassbinder retrospective came along and I couldn't resist any longer.

While I haven't lost my love for German film, there hasn't been enough available compared to French or Japanese cinema, where there's an endless supply.

Umbugbene wrote: ↑Fri Mar 13, 2020 4:32 pm For a long time German cinema was my main interest, thanks to Werner Herzog and to The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, which started it all. One of my goals was to see every film mentioned in The Haunted Screen. Strangely I resisted looking at Fassbinder's films for a few years, thinking no modern German director could be as good as Herzog, but in 1997 a huge Fassbinder retrospective came along and I couldn't resist any longer.

While I haven't lost my love for German film, there hasn't been enough available compared to French or Japanese cinema, where there's an endless supply.

Faassbinder is wonderful! I was also delighted when I discovered him (more or less on chance, when I rented Merchant of Four Seasons from the local library on VHS).

There are literally hundreds(!) of outstanding directors who have been working in Germany throughout the years (and some like Emigholz, Schanelec, Köhler, Winckler, Petzold, Graf, Schmidt, Lemke, etc. are still active), but the "international" situation is indeed abysmal, as it is incredibly hard to get hold of a large number of German films with foreign subtitles for private use.

My guess would be that German film culture is completely ignorant (mostly willfully) of all its treasures, and would never assume anyone outside of the country would care for any of the films (which is of course completely idiotic). Even many film historians in Germany know very little about German film history.

It's a bit like people would think there were only 4 or 5 great Japanese filmmakers, or you had like Ford and Hitchcock and Griffith for the US, and that would be it.

wba wrote: ↑Thu Mar 12, 2020 8:31 am Die Carmen von St. Pauli "Docks of Hamburg"
Erich Waschneck, Germany 1928

Watchlisted!

A GERMAN MOVIE ABOUT DA DOCKS????

it's not on KG. if anyone has it, PLZ UP!!!!!!

Unfortunately, I only have a German language list prepared (https://www.imdb.com/list/ls058909444/) so I had to do this from scratch. To get a slightly different view I decided to do top 10s per decade, except the last 3 which I have seen painfully little from.

I let the 20s, 30s and 70s pass the top 10 mark, as there is so much greatness in these decades, you can consider them runner-ups as the total listing below is 120:

1920s:

1. Metropolis (1927, Fritz Lang)
2. Faust - Eine deutsche Volkssage (1926, F.W. Murnau)
3. Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler - Ein Bild der Zeit / Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler (1922, Fritz Lang)
4. Der Letzte Mann / The Last Laugh (1924, F.W. Murnau)
5. Von morgens bis Mitternacht / From Morn to Midnight (1922, Karl Heinz Martin)
6. Die Büchse der Pandora / Pandora's Box (1929, Georg Wilhelm Pabst)
7. Zhivoy trup / The Living Corpse (1929, Fyodor Otsep)
8. Die Nibelungen: Kriemhild's Revenge (1924, Fritz Lang)
9. Die Nibelungen: Siegfried (1924, Fritz Lang)
10. Hamlet (1921, Svend Gade & Heinz Schall)

11. Lucrezia Borgia (1922, Richard Oswald)
12. Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam (1920, Carl Boese & Paul Wegener)
13. Spione (1928, Fritz Lang)
14. Tagebuch einer Verlorenen / Diary of a Lost Girl (1929, Georg Wilhelm Pabst)
15. Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari. (1920, Robert Wiene)
16. Der Brennende Acker / Burning Soil (1922, F.W. Murnau)
17. Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (1922, F.W. Murnau)
18. Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed (1926, Lotte Reiniger)
19. Frau im Mond / Woman in the Moon (1929, Fritz Lang)
20. Othello (1922, Dimitri Buchowetzki)

21. Die letzte Droschke von Berlin / The Last Taxi in Berlin (1926, Carl Boese)
22. Adieu Mascotte (1929, Wilhelm Thiele)
23. Der müde Tod (1921, Fritz Lang)
24. Die Rothausgasse (1928, Richard Oswald)
25. Der steinerne Reiter / The Stone Rider (1923, Fritz Wendhausen)
26. Die weiße Hölle vom Piz Palü / The White Hell of Piz Palü (1929, Arnold Fanck & Georg Wilhelm Pabst)  
27. Menschen untereinander / The People Upstairs (1926, Gerhard Lamprecht)
28. Helena (1924, Manfred Noa)
29. Geheimnisse einer Seele / Secrets of a Soul (1926, Georg Wilhelm Pabst)
30. Am Rande der Welt / At the Edge of the World (1927, Karl Grune)


1930s:

1. Der zerbrochene Krug / The Broken Jug (1937, Gustav Ucicky & Emil Jannings)
2. Der Blaue Engel / The Blue Angel (1930, Josef von Sternberg)
3. M (1931, Fritz Lang)
4. Der Kongreß tanzt / Congress Dances (1931, Erik Charell)
5. Das testament des Dr. Mabuse (1933, Fritz Lang)
6. Der Hauptmann von Köpenick / The Captain from Köpenick (1931, Richard Oswald)
7. Mazurka (1935, Willi Forst)
8. Wer nimmt die Liebe ernst... / Who takes love seriously? (1931, Erich Engel)
9. Mädchen in Uniform (1931, Leontine Sagan & Carl Froelich)
10. Liebelei (1933, Max Ophüls) 
11. Kameradschaft (1931, Georg Wilhelm Pabst)
12. Sonnenstrahl (1933, Pál Fejös)
13. Viktor und Viktoria (1933, Reinhold Schünzel)
14. Fährmann Maria (1936, Frank Wisbar)
15. Westfront 1918 (1930, Georg Wilhelm Pabst) 


1940s:

1. Liebe '47 (1949, Wolfgang Liebeneiner)
2. Münchhausen (1943, Josef von Báky)
3. Berliner Ballade (1948, Robert A. Stemmle)
4. Straßenbekanntschaft / Street Acquaintances (1948, Peter Pewas)
5. Rotation (1949, Wolfgang Staudte)
6. In jenen Tagen / In Those Days / Seven Journeys (1947, Helmut Käutner)
7. Zwischen gestern und morgen / Between Yesterday and Tomorrow (1947, Harald Braun)
8. Wir machen Musik (1942, Helmut Käutner)
9. Romanze in Moll / Romance in a Minor Key (1943, Helmut Käutner)
10. Die Feuerzangenbowle / The Punch Bowl (1944, Helmut Weiss) 


1950s:

1. Die Brücke / The Bridge (1959, Bernhard Wicki)
2. Sterne (1959, Konrad Wolf)
3. Der Untertan / The Kaiser's Lackey (1951, Wolfgang Staudte)
4. Die Geschichte vom kleinen Muck / The Story of Little Mook (1953, Wolfgang Staudte)
5. Nachts, wenn der Teufel kam / The Devil Strikes at Night (1957, Robert Siodmak)
6. Der Tiger von Eschnapur / The Tiger of Eschnapur (1959, Fritz Lamg)
7. Das Indische Grabmal / The Indian Tomb (1959, Fritz Lang)
8. Das kalte Herz / Heart of Stone (1950, Paul Verhoeven)
9. Himmel ohne Sterne / Sky Without Stars (1955, Helmut Käutner)
10. Des Teufels General / The Devil's General (1955, Helmut Käutner) 


1960s:

1. Die Parallelstrasse / The Parallel Street (1962, Ferdinand Khittl)
2. Ich bin ein Elefant, Madame / I Am an Elephant Madam (1969, Peter Zadek)
3. 1000 Augen des Dr. Mabuse, Die / The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse (1960, Fritz Lang)
4. Jagdszenen aus Niederbayern / Hunting Scenes from Bavaria (1969, Peter Fleischmann)
5. Katz und Maus / Cat and Mouse (1967, Hans Jürgen Pohland)
6. Spur der Steine / Trace of Stones (1966, Frank Beyer)
7. Der Fall Gleiwitz / The Gleiwitz Case (1961, Gerhard Klein)
8. Die Artisten in der Zirkuskuppel: Ratlos (1968, Alexander Kluge)
9. Detektive (1969, Rudolf Thome)
10. Lebenszeichen / Signs of Life (1968, Werner Herzog) 


1970s:

1. Chinesisches Roulette (1976, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
2. Stroszek (1977, Werner Herzog)
3. Jeder für sich und Gott gegen alle (1974, Werner Herzog)
4. Der Amerikanische Freund (1977, Wim Wenders)
5. Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes / Aguirre, Wrath of God (1972, Werner Herzog)
6. Welt am Draht / World on a Wire (1973, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
7. Karl May (1974, Hans-Jürgen Syberberg)
8. Baal (1970, Volker Schlöndorff)
9. Bitteren Tränen der Petra von Kant, Die (1972, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
10. Angst essen Seele auf / Fear Eats the Soul (1974, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)

11. Die Ehe der Maria Braun / The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
12. Winifred Wagner und die Geschichte des Hauses Wahnfried von 1914-1975 (1977, Hans-Jürgen Syberberg)
13. Die Dritte Generation / The Third Generation (1979, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
14. Die Blechtrommel (1979, Volker Schlöndorff)
15. In einem Jahr mit 13 Monden / In A Year With 13 Moons (1978, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
16. Unter dem Pflaster ist der Strand / Under the Pavement Lies the Strand (1975, Helma Sanders-Brahms)
17. Faustrecht der Freiheit / Fox and His Friends (1975, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
18. Herz aus Glas / Heart of Glass (1976, Werner Herzog)
19. Hitler, ein Film aus Deutschland / Hitler: A Film from Germany (1977, Hans-Jürgen Syberberg)
20. Angst vor der Angst / Fear of Fear (1975, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)

21. Die Niklashauser Fart / The Niklashausen Journey (1970, Rainer Werner Fassbinder & Michael Fengler)
22. Frauen in New York (1977, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
23. Der Fangschuß / Coup de grâce (1976, Volker Schlöndorff)
24. Mutter Küsters' Fahrt zum Himmel (1975, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
25. Theodor Hierneis oder Wie man ehem. Hofkoch wird (1972, Hans-Jürgen Syberberg)


1980s:

1. Fitzcarraldo (1982, Werner Herzog)
2. Der Himmel über Berlin / Wings of Desire (1987, Wim Wenders)
3. Das Boot (1981, Wolfgang Peterson)
4. Johanna D'Arc of Mongolia (1989, Ulrike Ottinger)
5. Klassenverhältnisse / Class Relations (1984, Danièle Huillet & Jean-Marie Straub)
6. Rosa Luxemburg (1986, Margarethe von Trotta)
7. Lili Marleen (1981, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
8. Freak Orlando (1981, Ulrike Ottinger)
9. Bilder der Welt und Inschrift des Krieges / Images of the World and the Inscription of War (1989, Harun Farocki)
10. Deutschland bleiche Mutter / Germany Pale Mother (1980, Helma Sanders-Brahms)


1990s-Present:

1. The White Ribbon (2009, Michael Haneke)
2. Victoria (2015, Sebastian Schipper)
3. Western (2017, Valeska Grisebach)
4. Kreuzweg / Stations of the Cross (2014, Dietrich Brüggemann)
5. Gegen die Wand / Head-On (2004, Fatih Akin)
6. Toni Erdmann (2016, Maren Ade)
7. Europa Europa (1990, Agnieszka Holland)
8. Der goldene Handschuh / The Golden Glove (2019, Fatih Akin)
9. Antigone (1992, Hulliet & Straub)
10. Sehnsucht / Longing (2006, Valeska Grisebach)

bure wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 2:21 am A GERMAN MOVIE ABOUT DA DOCKS????

it's not on KG. if anyone has it, PLZ UP!!!!!!

Yeah, it's a wonderful movie and takes place completely at the docks.
I had the fortune to watch it from 35mm at a silent film festival, and I have many DCPs and Blu-rays lying around at my workplace for rental to cinemas all over the world, cause I work at the company which owns the rights to it.
But therefore I also cannot serve anyone with a rip or such.

Maybe it will get a release on home media in the future, and someone will make english subs for it.
Or you'll be lucky to catch it at some digital screenings at some cinemas. Ask your local cinema to play it - if it happens, the film will be sent to them by me personally.

honestly very bad with german film, so i'll just do a personal ten films

hintertreppe (1921, paul leni & leopold jessner)
the indian tomb (1959, fritz lang)
eika katappa (1969, werner schroeter)
martha (1974, rainer werner fassbinder)
the assault of the present on the rest of time (1985, alexander kluge)
die katz (1988, dominik graf)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0V2LArBod8
black sin (1989, straub/huillet)
pilots (1995, christian petzold)
das glück meiner schwester (1995, schanelec)
in my room (2018, ulrich kohler)

love german movies. several of my fav movies ever, including my #1, are german. these are my top 10

1. Kings of the Road (Wenders, 1976)
2. Stroszek (Herzog, 1979)
3. The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (Fassbinder, 1972)
4. Young Toerless (Schlondorf, 1966)
5. Absolute Giganten (Schipper, 1999)
6. Paris, Texas (Wenders, 1984)
7. Under the Bridges (Kaeutner, 1946)
8. Berlin: Symphony of a Metropolis (Ruttmann, 1927)
9. Alice in the Cities (Wenders, 1974)
10. Effi Briest (Fassbinder, 1974)

was there ever a movement that came onto the scene hotter than the new german cinema of the 1970s?

bure wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 7:24 pm
was there ever a movement that came onto the scene hotter than the new german cinema of the 1970s?

yeah, the new german cinema of the 1980s!

wba wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 7:44 pm

yeah, the new german cinema of the 1980s!

Der Fan

one little seen New German cinema gem is Baal (1970), Schlöndorff directing Fassbinder and his troupe. T'was unavailable for several decades due to the efforts of Bertolt Brecht's estate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WFX4tWm9OM

The realest unearthed masterpiece of recent times though is Acht Stunden sind kein Tag. RWF was really on top of his game with that cheery, political soap opera.

greennui wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 8:52 pm

wba wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 7:44 pm

yeah, the new german cinema of the 1980s!

Der Fan

Yeah, one of my favorites as well! There's dozens of German films like this from the (early) 80s. It was a "thing" back then, like a whole international "Cinema du look".

I have included 5 of those in my 80s section of the list (Brandmale, Das Gold Der Liebe, Alpha City, Das zweite Gesicht, Die flambierte Frau) as well as one from the 70s (Rheingold - which is also the name of the band who performed the title song for Der Fan ).

look at this trailer for Dominik Graf's cinema feature debut (it has english subs):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8ukzb5waFA

wba wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 9:28 pm

greennui wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 8:52 pm

wba wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 7:44 pm

yeah, the new german cinema of the 1980s!

Der Fan

Yeah, one of my favorites as well! There's dozens of German films like this from the (early) 80s. It was a "thing" back then, like a whole international "Cinema du look".

I have included 5 of those in my 80s section of the list (Brandmale, Das Gold Der Liebe, Alpha City, Das zweite Gesicht, Die flambierte Frau) as well as one from the 70s (Rheingold - which is also the name of the band who performed the title song for Der Fan ).

I'm not much of a fan of the French Cinéma du look but I liked the Neue Deutsche Welle vibe of Der Fan.

Well, this cinema du look thing was probably an international "postmodern" phenomenon, but Germany definitely contributed this special "NDW"-vibe to some of it.

My knowledge of German cinema effectively ends with Fritz Lang's departure for the US. Of the Fassbinder I've seen I only really liked BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ. Wenders leaves me pretty cold, with Bruno Ganz being the best part of THE AMERICAN FRIEND, and don't get me started about WINGS OF DESIRE.

List, well, here, no real order:

PANDORA'S BOX (Pabst) possibly the greatest dramatic film of the whole silent era, I'm kind of starting to think.
METROPOLIS (Lang)
NOSFERATU (Murnau)
NOSFTERATU THE VAMPYRE (Herzog)
DIE NIBELUNGEN (Lang) the whole shebang, both parts
M (Lang) sorry to be so damn canonical, but this one just ruins everything for a while after I see it, nothing else can measure up.
THE AMERICAN FRIEND (Wenders) at least the bits centering on Ganz's character having more fun than he'd really expected to.
BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ (Fassbinder) okay, yeah.
PEOPLE ON SUNDAY (Siodmak/Ulmer)
BERLIN: SYMPHONY OF A GREAT CITY (Ruttmann)
FAUST (Murnau) mainly for the opening sections before the insipid love story brings it all to a halt.
THE DOLL (Lubitsch)
THE LAST LAUGH (Murnau)
ADVENTURES OF PRINCE ACHMED (Reininger)
CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (Wiene)

Roscoe wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2020 7:21 pmM (Lang) sorry to be so damn canonical, but this one just ruins everything for a while after I see it, nothing else can measure up.

watched for the first time last year, and couldn't agree more - it really is that good; somehow exceeded my already extremely high expectations.

greennui wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 9:05 pm one little seen New German cinema gem is Baal (1970), Schlöndorff directing Fassbinder and his troupe. T'was unavailable for several decades due to the efforts of Bertolt Brecht's estate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WFX4tWm9OM

The realest unearthed masterpiece of recent times though is Acht Stunden sind kein Tag. RWF was really on top of his game with that cheery, political soap opera.

Baal <3 <3 <3

One of my greatest first time viewings last year!

Eight Hours Don't Make a Day was also great, and I'm so happy it got the treatment it did (though I found it a bit too, as you say, soapy, to love it as much as you).