Good Bye, Lenin! Quotes

Alexander Kerner My mother outlived the GDR by three days. I believe it was a good thing she never learned the truth. She died happy. She wanted us to scatter her ashes to the winds. That's prohibited in Germany, both East and West. But we didn't care. She's up there somewhere now. Maybe looking down at us. Maybe she sees us as tiny specks on the Earth's surface, just like ] did back then. The country my mother left behind was a country she believed in; a country we kept alive till her last breath; a country that never existed in that form; a country that, in my memory, I will always associate with my mother.

Alexander Kerner Are you serious?! This is 30,000 Marks! Your time is up, too! We used this money for 40 years and now you Wessies think you can tell us it's worthless!? Let go of me! What are you looking at? It was your money, too!

Robert Kerner Sorry, do we know each other?

Alex Yes, we know each other.

Robert Kerner Yeah, I can't quite place you, help me out?

Alex stepsister His name is Alexander...

Robert Kerner Alex?

Denis Eighth floor?

Alexander Kerner Yup.

Denis Elevator?

Alexander Kerner Broken.

Denis Shit.

Alexander Kerner You can say that again.

Alexander Kerner All this stuff has to go. Are the old curtains in the cellar?

Ariane Kerner You can't be serious.

Sigmund Jähn Dear citizens of the German Democratic Republic... If you've lived to see the wonder of watching our blue planet from the depths of the cosmos, you see things differently. Up there, in the depths of space, the people's lives seem small and insignificant. Our German Democratic Republic seems tiny. You ask yourself what humanity has accomplished. Which objectives did we set, which objectives did we realize? Today is our country's anniversary. It's a very little country, seen from the cosmos. But still thousands of people came to us last year. People who we looked to as enemies and who want to live with us today. We know our country is not perfect. But what we believe in, inspired a lot of people in the whole world. Maybe we have drifted off course from time to time. But we collected ourselves. Socialism doesn't mean walling yourself in. Socialism means reaching out to others, and living with others. Not just to dream about a better world, but to make a better world. I have therefore decided to open the GDR borders.

Alexander Kerner Somehow my scheme had taken on a life of its own. The GDR I created for her increasingly became the one I might have wished for.

Alexander Kerner After over a year, it was time to end the scheme. But unlike in real life, the GDR would get the sendoff it deserved.

Ariane Kerner You were in a coma. Eight months ago.

Christiane Kerner Eight months? What happened?

Ariane Kerner Yeah, it was...

Alexander Kerner It was in October, in the supermarket. There was this enormous queue and it was really hot and you just passed out.

Christiane Kerner In October?

Alexander Kerner It was an unusually hot October day.

Denis Denis.

Denis It's my best production ever. A pity your Mom will be the only audience...

Dr. Wagner You must protect her from any kind of excitement. And I do mean any kind, Mr. Kerner.

Alexander Kerner Any kind of excitement.

Dr. Wagner It would be life-threatening.

Alexander Kerner And this here?

Alexander Kerner Wouldn't you call this exciting?

Sigmund Jähn Where to?

Alexander Kerner Wannsee.

Sigmund Jähn I know what you think. Everyone does. But I'm not him.