Ostkreuz (1991)
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Directors
Cast
Laura Tonke, Suzanne von Borsody, Miroslav Baka, Steffan Cammann, Gustav Barwicki, Henry Marcinkowsk, Beatrice Manowski, Martin Trettlau, Sophia Rois, Lutz Weidlich, Michael Krause
A teenager fleeing east-to-west with her mother searches for a place of her own amid the uncertainty of starting over.
The story
Fifteen-year-old Elfie flees with her mother through Hungary to the West in the period before the Wall opens. With little money, they are placed in a dreary reception camp, and their new life falls far short of Elfie’s hopes. They are a few thousand marks short of the deposit needed for an apartment. Seeking to improve their prospects, Elfie’s mother begins an affair with a small-business owner, while Elfie accompanies Darius, a Polish petty criminal, on his rounds in the hope of earning money. They meet Edmund, a boy Elfie’s age who is also on his own and wandering through the city; the two begin to grow closer.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Fifteen-year-old Elfie flees with her mother to the West via Hungary in the period before the Wall opens. Since they have very little money, they end up at first in a dreary reception camp. Their new place to live is hardly Elfie’s dream of the West. They are a few thousand marks short of the deposit for a new apartment. Hoping to improve their situation, Elfie’s mother begins an affair with a small-business owner. Meanwhile, Elfie accompanies Darius, a Polish petty criminal, on his rounds, hoping to scrape together some money too. Together with Darius, she meets Edmund, who is the same age and also on his own, now wandering aimlessly through the city. The two tentatively grow closer. Eventually, Elfie manages to get together the 3,000 marks for the deposit. This allows her to leave the camp with her mother, and she hopes to find a better life farther west. In the end, however, she separates from her mother and her mother’s lover and initially moves in with Edmund. He lives in an unfinished building, in the middle of winter—but where else can they go?
Genres
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