Wolfgang Becker’s “Good Bye Lenin!” cleverly blends humor with tragedy to tell its story. The film, set in East Germany during the fall of the Berlin Wall, follows the journey of Alexander Kerner, a young man trying his best to shield his bedridden mother from the realities of the political changes in Germany (that took place while she was in a coma).

The movie makes fun of the absurdity of living in Soviet-era East Germany through devices such as satire and irony. For example, the scene in which Alex and his friend fabricate a news report to account for Coca-Cola’s sudden appearance in East Germany is delivered humorously but touches on a not-so-humorous subject. Alex’s attempts to recreate the past by creating fake news broadcasts and finding old food products with the “Made in GDR” label on them, highlight the lengths people went to in order to cling to the ideals of socialism as it fell apart right in front of them. An illustration of irony is in the scene where Alex’s mother is able to step out of her bed for the first time. She goes outside and is confused (but hopefully delighted) to witness a huge Lenin statue being airlifted out of East Germany, not comprehending that the nation is currently experiencing a political uprising.

My favorite trait of combining these two genres of tragedy and comedy is its ability to offset the sad/tragic undertones of the film. Alex’s mother is entering the last stages of her life and is having to be hidden from the constructs of her country being rapidly changed around her for fear that it might send her over the edge. It’s a tragic situation that is only amplified by the absence of Alex’s father and the context of the family’s relationship with him. However, Alex’s attempts to maintain the illusion of the old East Germany for his mother are often quite funny to watch and delivered with a heart-touching element. It creates a great balance with the tragedy of the film that makes for an easily-digestible, entertaining (but still emotional and informative) watch.