Let's stop beating around the bush and just admit that the USA and USSR were the same.

Rating: 10/10 (4 September 2007)

Even with all the recognition that "Das Leben der Anderen" (called "The Lives of Others" in English) has received, I would say that it deserves even more. The movie depicts the spy network in East Germany and how it targets a group of people including a state-approved playwright. One issue that the movie brings up is whether or not the events portrayed could happen in any other country...including our own. If so, then it wouldn't be a surprise, as the United States and Soviet Union were basically the same sorts of societies. What the USA did in Latin America, the USSR did in Eastern Europe. They claimed to be enemies, but it was all for show; they just wanted to build empires and spy on dissidents within their own borders.
But anyway, this is a very well done movie, and I recommend it to everyone.