esrosedotblog

FINI

I watched the last segment of

Heimat: A German Chronicle (1985)

It has to have one of the best endings.

This film, originally a miniseries, has not been adapted into a movie. It was 15.5 hours on teevee and it is 15.5 hours as a film.

Nothing is spared.

There is no time when I felt as though it should rush ahead. Mostly, I felt that I wanted more.

I even broke a rule and replayed one of the last segments over again.

I cannot recommend this film more highly.

Through the story of an extended family in a village in Germany over a period from 1922 to 1982 we see a deeply layered story about the people, the culture, the times, the changes and the things that endure.

The entire enterprise is superbly done. There is no doubt that there is an autobiographical core. One character is clearly the writer and director Edgar Reitz.

Some actors are in for the long haul; that is, they live for the full 60 years! Many others change as their character ages. No matter. It all holds together.

Since I shared a bit of the time that this film covers, I could identify moments when they and I were in the same or similar places. To that extent, it transcends locale and culture.

This is a 5 plus out of Netflix5.