Damiel (Bruno Ganz) and Cassiel (Otto Sander) are angels who watch over the city of Berlin. They don't have harps or wings (well, they usually don't have wings) and they prefer overcoats to gossamer gowns. But they can travel unseen through the city, listening to people's thoughts, watching their actions and studying their lives. While they can make their presence felt in small ways, only children and other angels can see them. They spend their days serenely observing, unable to interact with people, and they feel neither ...
Read More
Damiel (Bruno Ganz) and Cassiel (Otto Sander) are angels who watch over the city of Berlin. They don't have harps or wings (well, they usually don't have wings) and they prefer overcoats to gossamer gowns. But they can travel unseen through the city, listening to people's thoughts, watching their actions and studying their lives. While they can make their presence felt in small ways, only children and other angels can see them. They spend their days serenely observing, unable to interact with people, and they feel neither pain nor joy. One day, Damiel finds his way into a circus and sees Marion (Solveig Dommartin), a high-wire artist, practicing her act; he is immediately smitten. After the owners of the circus tell the company that the show is out of money and must disband, Marion sinks into a funk, shuffling back to her trailer to ponder what to do next. As he watches her, Damiel makes a decision: he wants to be human, and he wants to be with Marion, to lift her spirits and, if need be, to share her pain. Wim Wenders' Wings of Desire is a remarkable modern fairy tale about the nature of being alive. The angels witness the gamut of human emotions, and they experience the luxury of simple pleasures (even a cup of coffee and a cigarette) as ones who've never known them. From the angels' viewpoint, Berlin is seen in gorgeous black-and-white -- strikingly beautiful but unreal; when they join the humans, the image shifts to rough but natural-looking color, and the waltz-like grace of the angels' drift through the city changes to a harsher rhythm. Peter Falk appears as himself, revealing a secret that we may not have known about the man who played Columbo, and there's also a brief but powerful appearance by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds. Wings of Desire hinges on the intangible and elusive, and it builds something beautiful from those qualities. Mark Deming, Rovi
Read Less
Add this copy of Wings of Desire [Vhs] to cart. $9.30, good condition, Sold by HPB-Ruby rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1993 by Orion Studios (Old Label).
I heard the movie way before I ever saw it. An unusual approach for such a visual medium. I was an art student at the time and listened to the soundtrack when I painted. The opening cello just drew me in. Then I got the chance to see it! There is such a connection between the music and the action of the movie that I had an immediate connection. The angels were portrayed with such real sympathy that you understood their sadness with the despair that the humans they watch endure daily. then there is the love story between the angel and the trapeze artist. He watches her and falls in love. He looses her when he gives up his wings. the there is one of the best romantic scenes in cinema when he finds her and tells her of his feelings. It is as if she already knew. I never knew how romantic the german language was. This scene will change minds. All this and Peter Falk too! What more can a movie do? The black and white aspect to movie just adds a lot of atmosphere and reminds you of the ever presence of the wall. While I have not watched the movie many times it is one of the movies that I can recall scenes at a moments thought. It just stays with you like Blade Runner or the Red Balloon. You never forget.
![Wings of Desire [Vhs]](https://www2.alibris-static.com/cover/v20402uwnrf_t.jpg)
![Wings of Desire [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]](https://www4.alibris-static.com/wings-of-desire-criterion-collection-blu-ray/cover/u86887js1z8.jpg)
![Wings of Desire [Criterion Collection]](https://www4.alibris-static.com/wings-of-desire-criterion-collection/cover/u86888p3pzp.jpg)
![Wings of Desire [Special Edition]](https://www3.alibris-static.com/wings-of-desire-special-edition/cover/t31133xbhar.jpg)
