Alice in the Cities (Alice in den Städten)
Directed by Wim Wenders
Written by Wim Wenders with Veith von Furstenberg
West Germany/1974
IMDb page
First viewing/Amazon Prime rental
Angela: Your stories and your experiences – you treat them like raw eggs. As if you were the only one to experience things. And that’s why you keep taking pictures. They’re something you can hold on to, more evidence that it was you who saw these things.
Wim Wenders takes us on a unique road trip through America and Europe. The pace took getting used to but I loved it.
A German publication has hired Philip Winter (Rudiger Vogler) to write a story conveying the “landscape of America” and has financed his road trip through the country. But all Philip has been able to accomplish after several weeks and thousands of miles is to take hundreds of Polaroid photos that don’t capture the reality he is going for. He also spends a lot of his time complaining about the vulgarity and crassness of American popular culture. He’s not a bad guy, just a chronic sourpuss.
Finally Philip’s publisher cuts off his financing. He has very little money of his own and has to go back to Germany. But when he arrives at JFK airport he finds out that German air traffic controllers are on strike and his next opportunity would be the next day on a flight to Amsterdam. While at the counter, he helps a young mother who does not speak English. She is in a hurry to get back home with nine-year-old Alice (Yella Röttlander) after a break up. The three become friendly and spend the time until the next morning together. Then mom leaves Alice with Philip while she goes out. Alice wants to go sightseeing, something Philip seems never to have considered, so they do.
When they get back to the hotel, the mother has left a note saying that she had to comfort her ex-boyfriend and she would meet them at the Empire State Building. She fails to appear there or anywhere else she says she will and Philip is now stuck with Alice who says she does not remember her grandmother’s name or location. The two develop a strange rapport as they make their way through Germany in search of a home for Alice,. Her enthusiasm for new places and experiences slowly rubs off on him.
I must admit that for the first long while, I kept wondering when something was going to actually happen. But when I relaxed and just went along for the ride, I was delighted with the movie. It’s sort of the old story of a child showing a cynic the wonder of life. But it is also absolutely unsentimental and real. Ruttlander is a natural and doesn’t have a “cute” bone in her body. I bought it all. And there’s plenty to think about afterwards, too. Recommended.
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