November Days (1991)

The film was commissioned by the BBC and shot one year after the fall of the Berlin Wall. By way of a series of interviews, it explores the "hangover" in the wake of German reunification. In taking stock of this situation, Ophuls quickly departs from the conventional reportage model, approaching his material in a playful manner and infusing his commentary on it with ironic humor. His interviewees - who range from GDR head of state Egon Krenz, dramatist Heiner Müller and neo-Nazi Michael Kühnen to members of the general public - are not degraded into contemporary witnesses of a fact-driven narrative. Rather, it is through their experiences and perspectives that the story emerges.