Fresh and Exciting

As Good As It Gets

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

"Der ganz große Traum" or "Lessons of a Dream" is a German 100-minute movie (without credits) from 5 years ago. It was co-written and directed by Sebastian Grobler and it surprises me to see that he has not made another theatrical release after this film as I quite enjoyed the watch here. It may have to do with Daniel Brühl giving one of his better performances as the main character, but the real heart and should of this film is a script. Sometimes too many cooks spoil the broth, but not here. Well done. The movie is in theory about how football came to Germany when a teacher who worked in England recently returns to Braunschweig in the late 19th century and teaches his students about this totally unknown activity.But this film is also a good watch for those with little interest in ball-games. The characters (grown-ups and children) are interesting to watch with who they are, how they behave and who they become during the course of the film. Social standards play a big role as well as Germans really not liking the English at this point in time. I do not have one particular scene that I enjoyed the most here, but I also don't have a scene I really disliked, which is much more important. It was a nice watch from start to finish. I also believe the fact that pretty much half of the cast are children makes this a quality watch for younger audiences. I have seen many German so-called kids films that offered nothing and parents should not let their kids watch them because they are just utterly forgettable. This one is different. It is an interesting watch as it plays mostly in a school and also delivers convincingly in terms of group dynamics. A good message on fair play that kids might remember and this one applies to a lot more than football."Der ganz große Traum" is a success and it is nice to see the awards attention it received. Well-deserved. For me it was particularly nice because I also like Burghart Klaußer, Thomas Thieme, Axel Prahl and Justus von Dohnanyi and one of them was basically in every scene that was not visually about the kids playing football. The ending was also nice with the remaining doubts (based on racism) crushed by team spirit and competition. Go check this movie out. You will not be disappointed. I certainly recommend seeing it and it is closer to a **** than a **. The music is pretty great too. Don't miss out here.

Yes, the movie is a kind of German version of Dead Poet' Society. If you like one, you will like the other. Both movies are about teaching and show the relation young teacher - elder teachers - pupils - parents. A young teacher has modern ideas and didactical goals that most of his elder colleagues either do not understand or find threatening. It takes some time before the pupils understand what he wants them to learn. Conservative parents do everything to get the teacher dispelled from school.Because the movies are so similar, the differences between the two societies in which they take place become very clear. Also, the endings differ, but that is less important.

I caught this movie after a hard day of watching football during the 2014 world cup in Brazil. The movie is about the beginnings of the sport in the 1870s Germany or as it was known back then, an empire. Fresh from various military successes against the French and the English, national pride was deeply ingrained. Along comes Konrad Koch, a young German who had spent several years in England. With him he brings a football. He has been hired as an English teacher in the city of Braunschweig. There he encounters resistance to change amongst the snobbish kids and their even snobbier parents. Suffice it to say, the beautiful game paves the way for change. A charming movie. In a way, reminds me a bit of a more intellectual version of "The Goonies" seems like a stretch but its not. Definitely worth seeing. Goal!!

Someone explain to me why a film about an advocate of the British way of life teaching soccer to pre WW1 German school kids should be more plausible and involving that Robin Williams extolling the virtues of poetry to his lot. That doesn't compute but it's a fact.Handsome costume movie production values. Strong performances and a feeling of connection with wider events battle the film's predictable situation and development.Brühl gets better every film and could become a major player. The rest are unfamiliar. It will be interesting to see if any of them realise the potential shown here.