Gerhard Klein's Berlin, Schoenhauser Corner is an East German film released in 1957 during the Kruschev Thaw which resulted in decreased censorship and repression for a brief period of time. One year after its release, there would be a massive clampdown in the Soviet Union and its satellite states with the intention of purging Western influences from society, entertainment, and culture. Therefore, Berlin, Schoenhauser Corner is a remarkable film that manages to depict life in the GDR in the 50s with some honesty. The film focuses on one of the most prevalent problems facing the newly formed GDR: the identity crisis facing the post-war youth. The film follows four teenagers as they drift about searching for a purpose in life. They spend their time going to movies, loitering, and committing petty acts of vandalism. The four are constantly in trouble with the police. Finally, in an effort to make some extra money, one of them, a young man named Karl-Heinz, steals an ID and smuggles himself into West Germany. While there, he participates in a robbery where he accidentally kills a man. When he returns to the GDR, the lives of his friends are thrown into turmoil when he threatens them with a gun after they try and interrogate him. Berlin, Schoenhauser Corner is one of the most important films in German history. It is a fascinating look into a culture struggling for a purpose and meaning.
7/10
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