Ein Frau mit blonden Haaren und Vampirzähnen beugt sich über einen bewusstlosen Mann, der auf einer Bahre liegt und dem Blut entnommen wird.

Festival

Wild, Weird, Bloody. German Genre Films of the 70s

13.–23.2.25

Iconic films from East and West Germany: For the upcoming Berlinale Retrospective we showcase the vibrant genre cinema of the 1970s.

Retrospective of the 75th Berlin International Film Festival

  • Program

    The complete Retrospective program and ticket purchase information will be available here shortly.

    Berlinale website

As part of the Berlinale 2025, the Retrospective ‘Wild, Weird, Bloody. German Genre Films of the 70s’ celebrates the German genre cinema of this decade.

Rainer Rother, head of the Retrospective and the Kinemathek, explains: “A longstanding preconception says that Germans can’t do genre. But in fact, early German cinema laid a groundwork that was influential in the international development of fantasy and science fiction moviemaking. […] Our Retrospective showcases pictures, made amid other film currents such as New German Cinema that embraced the appeal and played with the possibilities of a good genre flick.”

Ein Mann sitzt an einem zu hohen Tisch mit vielen Schnurtelefonen vor ihm, einem alten Fernseher im Hintergrund und einem Graphen auf dem Tisch.

In the 1970s, a period influenced by the wave of exploitation films, numerous exceptional movies emerged, pushing the boundaries of storytelling and aesthetics. Roland Klick’s ‘Deadlock’ (1970) blends gangster and psychedelic late Western genres, while Hans W. Geißendörfer’s ‘Jonathan’ (1970) offers a new interpretation of the horror genre. From the GDR, ‘Orpheus in the Underworld’ (1974) and ‘Cloves in Aspic’ (1976) enrich the Retrospective. The program is complemented by works from Rainer Erler, Klaus Lemke, Ulli Lommel, and Wolfgang Petersen, who explored genres like the biker film, thriller, and musical.

Eine Frau mit kurzen Locken und einer Sonnenbrille blickt ernst nach vorne, ein Mann mit zurückgegelten längeren Haaren sitzt neben ihr in einem Auto.

“Modern audiences eagerly embrace genre cinema and enjoy tracing crime, science fiction, horror and other genre roots all the way back to the earliest days of the form. This selection of deep thrills and blood spills offers so many discoveries, and shines a light into new corners of German cinema”, comments Berlinale Director Tricia Tuttle.

The complete program will be announced in December 2024.

The Retrospective team

Director of the Retrospective, Artistic Director: Rainer Rother

Retrospective Curatorial Board: Rainer Rother, Annika Haupts

Programme Coordinator: Annika Haupts

Festival Coordinator: Anke Hartwig

Festival Manager: Christin Meyer

Team Assistant: Maria-Sophie Jenkel

Press: Silke Lehmann

Author: Jörg Schöning

Editor: Julian Born

Translator: Rebecca M. Stuart

Subtitling Coordinator: Noémie Causse

Film Print Coordinator: Steffen Vogt