Review of Wings of Desire (1987) by Chandler T — 05 Oct 2014

By human nature, we tend to not like something because we don't understand it. With a movie in different languages, someone may not fully understand the plot. The movie takes place in West Berlin, Germany in 1987. The time the movie is taking place allows for a much simpler storyline without the distractions we face every day. The actors Win Wenders did a great job directing this movie. The movie is so much more authentic if you have the translated subtitles instead of watching a dubbed version. A dubbed movie is when the movie is voiced over in English. Dubbed versions of movies don't give the same effect as an original movie with subtitles. The word choice is makes a huge difference when parts of the movie are worded different to have them be proper sentences in another language.

When a movie is translated to another language, the word choice isn't as precise and it could convey a different message. Having some details not blatantly obvious forces the viewer to really focus on what is going on in the movie. It is really hard to decipher what is going on in this movie at first. The movie is really confusing when you can't understand what the characters are saying and you have no pre developed idea of what is going to happen. There are a few ways to give settle hints that something is important to the plot, the color changes from black to white, zooming in on something, or even showing somebody's eyes. A few times in the movie, the color changes to show you are seeing something from an angel's perspective or the people who are still living. The change in color was a great indicator that the point of view in the movie had changed. Body movement is also very important when trying to comprehend a movie's plot. When an angel touches somebody it is very easy to tell the person can feel they are being protected, they seem to relax and can sense someone is there but don't look directly at the person right next to them.

Although a person could never talk to an angel, and an angel could never come back to life, the movie does take place in real places. Damiel (Bruno Ganz) wants so bad to be able to touch like a human can. He gives up his immortality to experience life. He is amazed by all the little things in life we wouldn't think twice about. Another angel, Cassie (Otto Sander) tries to save somebody who has given up, but fails and can't get the experience out of his head.

Solveig Dommartin was a French acrobat in the movie and she did all of her stunts in the movie herself, without a safety net. This shows true dedication on her part. After following her for a period of time, Damiel gives up his immortality to pursue his love for her. The poem repeated in the movie is called "Song of Childhood". The poem is generally about how the children can see angels but adults can't. This is mostly accounted to the fact that young kids still have their imagination and have been spoiled by society. The appreciation of life is evident throughout most of the movie. Some of the things Damiel was most impressed by are things we take advantage of each day. Watching how happy all this makes him shows the audience what is truly important. Things like seeing color or smelling flowers, are examples of sense we don't think much about. They are just a normal part of life. Little things that someone gave up immortality to experience. The color changes in the movie are used to show the perspective has changed but it felt like it also brightened the mood.

I think this is a great culturally diverse movie. The directing and concept behind the movie are what make it so much different. Even though I only understood the French and English parts of the movie, I admire all time and effort that went into making this movie.