RSVP VIA WENDE MUSEUM
Germany, 2011, 90 Min., German with English subtitles.
Director: Robert Thalheim, Screenplay: Ilja Haller, Susann Schimk, Iain Dilthey, Cast: Friederike Becht, Luise Heyer, Franz Dinda, Volker Bruch, Hans Uwe Bauer.
Summer 1988, One year before the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Inseparable 17-year-old twins Doreen (Becht) and Isabel (Heyer) are accomplished oarswomen from East Germany. The two have been sent by their country to spend the summer at training camp at Lake Balaton in the Soviet satellite state of Hungary. Unlike at home, Hungary’s more relaxed political climate and countless West German tourists visiting the popular lake resort offer the girls a new sense of freedom and even a small taste of the west.
Shortly after arriving, the girls meet Nico (Bruch) and Arne (Dinda), two young West German tourists from Hamburg. As Doreen falls for Nico, the twin's well-structured summer begins to crumble. Risking a promising career as a rower and her relationship with Isabel, Doreen begins to follow her heart, and falls deeper in love with Arne. When Arne, offers to take her back with him to the west, Doreen is faced with the impossible decision; will she destroy everything that the twins have worked for and follow her heart, and Arne?
Based on true events, Thalheim's third feature paints an engaging picture of first love on the backdrop of harsh political realities.
Presented in cooperation with The Wende Museum within the context of the exhibition
Promote, Tolerate, Ban: Art and Culture in Cold War Hungary currently on view at the Wende Museum from May 20 - August 26, 2018
© Wende Museum
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