Wenders. 60.

Unfortunately, Wenders hasn't yet been lucky enough to find or develop coherent material that even approaches that of Der Himmel über Berlin (Wings of Desire). In place of the postmodern bricolage of the early films and the ventures into mythological narrative (Berlin), an aimless search for originality has arisen which so far has only led to thematic sketches (The End of Violence, 1997), exoticism (Buena Vista Social Club, 1999) or stylized nostalgia (Viel passiert - Der BAP-Film [Ode to Cologne: a Rock 'N' Roll Film], 2001).

In 2005, Wim Wenders's art consists of staging scenes from Edward Hopper's paintings with a Marlboro Man in Butte, Montana. Depending on your temperament, you may find this pragmatic or helpless, but whatever it is, it has nothing to do with Germany anymore.

You'll find big round-number birthdays marked fairly regularly in German papers and Wenders's is no exception. Among the pieces online: Dieter Oßwald interviews Wenders for the Welt am Sonntag (via filmz.de) and so does Anke Westphal for the Berliner Zeitung. When she asks about what's on pretty much everyone else's mind this year, he replies, "The blockbuster formats, with their manic drive to outdo everything, are washed up.... Piracy is just another excuse. Hollywood depends too much on used up formulas. If it really knew how to go to great lengths and make a great film, it'd be making more great films. No one makes a flop on purpose."

For its appreciation, the Süddeutsche Zeitung scores a minor coup. How's this for a brief bio: "Hanns Zischler has translated Derrida's Of Grammatology, is researching Kafka and cinema and is an internationally renowned actor - he is currently in Budapest shooting Munich with Spielberg." In the SZ, he recalls Wenders as a film student before segueing into Im Lauf der Zeit (Kings of the Road).

Posted by dwhudson at August 13, 2005 7:24 AM