The Baader Meinhof Complex (2008)

Riveting drama revisiting the days of Germany's Red Army Faction. With films such as Downfall and The Lives of Others, recent German cinema has been celebrated while confronting dark periods in the country's history. The Baader Meinhof Complex continues that trend, as it deals with the Red Army Faction, the left-wing militant group formed by radicalised children of the Nazi generation, who fought an international terrorist campaign opposing American imperialism and the West German establishment throughout the 1970s. Moritz Bleibtreu and Martina Gedeck, as Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof respectively, lead an exceptional cast of young German actors, while Bruno Ganz puts in a reliably strong turn as Horst Herold, the head of the German police force charged with bringing the Faction to justice. While the action sequences are undoubtedly thrilling, the film dodges accusations of sensationalism, deftly dealing with the contradictory mentality of a group prepared to murder innocents in the name of democracy and justice. Based on Stefan Aust's definitive book about the group, adapted by Downfall screenwriter Bernd Eichinger, and directed by veteran helmer Uli Edel (Christiane F., Last Exit to Brooklyn), The Baader Meinhof Complex is a film of considerable class and authority. Michael Hayden.