Dorathen Better Late Then Never

Merolliv I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Raymond Sierra The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

david-63009 The story centers around a 24 year old East German Soldier in the 80's and all can say is that everything about the show, the characters, the sound, the look, the feel is just as it was. Having spent the entirety of my 20's stationed in Europe, as an Airman/Sergeant with the United States Air Force, flying in and out of Berlin, all I can say that they nailed it. I hope there is a Deutschland 84 and a Deutschland 85 and a Deutschland 86. I must not be the only person who thinks that is great, I just learned that Deutschland 83 just won the Peabody Award, so my guess is that this outstanding, and now award winning show will hopefully continue.

Tweekums Set in 1983 when Germany was still divided; a young East German soldier, Martin Rauch, is given a difficult task; he is to go to the West and replace a West German officer who is due to work at the aide to a general so that he can learn what the west is planning. He doesn't want to go but he is promised that his mother will get the medical treatment she needs if he goes. Once in the west he must quickly adapt to the different culture and start feeding information back to his handlers. Keeping his identity secret won't be easy and there will be consequences for those who might find out. In various subplots the general's son has a homosexual relationship with an Eastern agent who is part of the 'peace movement', Rauch's mother has a collection of banned books and Rauch gets involved with a woman to gain access to the officer she works for.This series nicely captures the cold war era; paranoid individuals convinced that the other side is preparing to launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike, naïve anti-nuclear protesters and even the fear of a new disease; AIDS; this is helped by an '80s soundtrack. There are of course a lot of unlikely events and coincidences which are either necessary to get Rauch into his position unsuspected or to heighten the drama. There is plenty of tension throughout even the ending where it looks as though war is imminent works even though viewers will obviously know that there was no nuclear war in 1983! The cast does a solid job; most notably Jonas Nay who plays Rauch. Overall a good eight-part drama that I recommend to anybody who enjoys cold war thrillers.These comments are based on watching the series in German with English subtitles.

gudrunley I am German and lived in east Germany as a child and in West Berlin until 1970. The series strikes me as something of a fairy story. just to give some examples: the protagonist would, as someone else stated, have to have undergone extensive training, not only in the English language - Russian was the first foreign language in East Germany - but also in West German - by 1983 the word material had diverged, reflecting the political and cultural separation since WWII. Just one example of the credibility gap: the protagonist's flight back into GDR. Controls on entering the motorway corridor were extremely strict. If you moved house from Berlin or vice versa you couldn't just pile stuff inside or on top of the car, you had to use a removal firm and itemise your goods in triplicate, down to your books. That's how claustrophobic the times were. Also, I know there was no way of stopping on the east German motorway (at least by 1970 and I would be interested to be corrected). Travel was timed, you were fined if you broke the speed limit and arrived too soon. There are many other details that don't ring true. I accept the series is meant to be entertainment not documentary but even my husband (English) found it hard to have to suspend disbelief so often.

syronth It is exaggerated, it is pretty dramatic. But thats what we usually expect today. On the other hand it were pretty dramatic times, the cold war was no fun at all even if we might think so today. This is what happens if you do not communicate.For me personally it's one of the best German TV shows of the last decades - speaking as a German. Our movies and TV shows are usually totally crap (especially today I would say). American readers might think that's a sad fact that is also true for American productions, but believe me, it's not the same. But that's a different topic.The series has its weaknesses, sometimes its pretty much a cliché but don't forget it's a comprehension of these times, it's not a documentary, it's a drama series. And there were in fact a lot of stubborn and blind people in high-rank positions, who even thought they were „smarter" than anyone else.I've been born in West Germany. 1983 I was just 7/8 years old and I do remember that my father (a teacher) was somehow upset at this time. I didn't understand the whole stuff, the TV was sometimes full of it, but this made me grow up with the idea that the whole world is pretty close to destroy itself in an instant. Strange times - I hadn't really a clue what was happening and was watching and doing a lot of different stuff. Geez, I was a kid, kids are always optimistic although I did have one or another nightmare of „some big war". The American culture had a deep and massive influence on Western Germany at this time, I do remember this quite well and it's not so obvious in this show but it's still noticeable. Like the GDR was under massive influence of the soviet union. Till today it's burned into my brain, indelibly. (Keep this is mind if you're an American and talk to Germans today - this whole cold war thing has pretty much messed up everything in the aftermath - till today.)But I'm loosing my point. For me the series captures the feeling in Germany at this time pretty well, the characters are spot on, the actors do an awesome job, they really feel „80s style", only the budget limit obviously stopped it from being better overall. But for this it's pretty impressive and for German standards pretty brave. It could have a bit more teeth but not to much since it's fairly trying to find a balance without punching into faces, it gives both sides a fair share of the story. We are smarter today - aren't we?Kudos to the producers, the writer, the director and the actors. Great job, it's a remarkable show I really wish it would go on and become even better. It were pretty difficult times but I believe Germany today is in an even more delicate situation and this story is not over yet. Unfortunately.