The Edge of Heaven (Auf der anderen seite) (2007)
92%RT Audience Score: 89%
Awards & Nominations: 38 wins & 23 nominations
Evocative and complex, this story of struggling immigrants in Germany will stay with you after you leave the theater.
The Edge of Heaven” is a film that will leave you feeling like you just went on an emotional rollercoaster. With a plot that shamelessly employs coincidences, it’s like “Babel” but with a richer, deeper sense of character. The missed connections can get maddening, but the delicate beauty of the film and the compassion for the characters and cultures in which they live make it worth the ride. It’s a much-needed maturation of the Babel/Crash formula, and it’s easy to get lost in the web of characters that Fatih Akin has woven. So, grab some popcorn and get ready for a wild ride through Turkey.
Production Company(ies)
Twentieth Century Fox,
Distributor
Strand
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Taksim, Istanbul, Turkey
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
2007
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital EX
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:2h 2m
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Language(s):German, Turkish, English
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Country of origin:Italy, Turkey
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): May 21, 2008 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 14, 2008
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
Drama, immigrants, Germany, Turkish prostitute, political activism, deportation, Istanbul, father-son relationship, mother-daughter relationship, love, loss, death, coincidence, character development, evocative, complex, emotional, heartfelt, poignant, subtle, moral fabric, ethical weight, intricate plot, melodramatic, tragedy, character-driven, nostalgia, home, belonging, cultural differences, open borders, surveillance culture, missed connections, compassion, vivid depictions, Western future, Eastern empire, delicate beauty, exceptional editing, irony, suspense, interesting themes, beautiful cinematography, hard-hitting, full of irony, emotive, interesting story, social context, character changes, fully realized, three stories, connected, independent, box office, gross USA, budget, directed by Fatih Akin, written by Fatih Akin, produced by Fatih Akin, Klaus Maeck, Andreas Thiel, starring Nurgül Yesilçay, Baki Davrak, Tuncel Kurtiz, Hanna Schygulla, Nursel Köse, Patrycia Ziolkowska, reviewed by Thomas Elsaesser, David Ansen, Cliff Doerksen, Melissa Anderson, Josh Rosenblatt, Amy Biancolli, David Bernal, David Lamble, Mattie Lucas, Sarah Manvel, Dennis Schwartz
Worldwide gross: $17,804,565
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $25,506,248
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,619
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 2,781,488
US/Canada gross: $742,349
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $1,063,465
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,174
US/Canada opening weekend: $14,257
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $20,424
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,505
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Baki Davrak – Nejat Aksu
Tuncel Kurtiz – Ali Aksu
Hanna Schygulla – Susanne Staub
Nursel Köse – Yeter
Patrycia Ziolkowska – Lotte
Director(s)
Fatih Akin
Writer(s)
Fatih Akin
Producer(s)
Fatih Akin, Klaus Maeck, Andreas Thiel
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
38 wins & 23 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (80) | Top Critics (31) | Fresh (72) | Rotten (8)
The subtlety of the film’s architecture does not lie in the plot, but has to do with the moral fabric being spun, whose overall design may require a third installment, or at any rate a sequel, to carry the ethical weight.
March 20, 2018
Thomas Elsaesser
Film Comment Magazine
TOP CRITIC
“The Edge of Heaven”‘s intricate, almost melodramatic plot shamelessly employs coincidences-much the way “Babel” did-but where that movie’s tragic events seemed gratuitous and strained, Akin has a richer, deeper sense of character.
February 6, 2018
David Ansen
Newsweek
TOP CRITIC
November 18, 2011 | Rating: 5/5
Cliff Doerksen
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
November 17, 2011 | Rating: 4/5
Melissa Anderson
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
[It’s] a much-needed maturation of the Babel/Crash formula but also fails to rattle your bones the way those movies did. Pick your poison, I suppose.
September 19, 2008 | Rating: 3/5
Josh Rosenblatt
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
What we don’t suspect, going in, is that a film of such plain-speaking admonitions can exploit the element of surprise. Yet this heartfelt and precisely assembled drama does just that.
September 5, 2008 | Rating: 3.5/4
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
[Fatih Akin] weaves a laconic and serene web of characters. [Full review in Spanish]
November 4, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/5
David Bernal
Cinemanía (Spain)
Along with vivid depictions of a Turkey torn between the remnants of its ancient Eastern empire and a tantalizingly possible Western future, The Edge of Heaven will delight an opening-night crowd…
May 26, 2020
David Lamble
Bay Area Reporter
There is a delicate beauty to it all. The missed connections tend to get maddening after a while, but Akin directs with a clear compassion for his characters and the cultures in which they live.
July 6, 2019 | Rating: 3/4
Mattie Lucas
From the Front Row
Akin has choreographed… a demonstration of how open borders close off other opportunities and, even in a surveillance culture, how easy it is to get lost.
February 11, 2019
Sarah Manvel
Cinemattraction
Much like one of Fassbinder’s great ones.
November 17, 2014 | Rating: B+
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews
February 12, 2013 | Rating: A-
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com…
Plot
“The Edge of Heaven” follows the intertwined stories of a Turkish prostitute, her daughter, and a German man and his son as they navigate love, loss, and political activism across Germany and Turkey.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Hanna Schygulla, who plays Susanne Staub in the film, is a German actress and singer who has appeared in over 100 films and TV shows.
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