For Australia Day we look at Wim Wenders 1991 film, Until The End Of The World. Filmed in 15 cities and 7 countries around the world, the final third of the story ends up in a cave and a series of stunning locations in outback Australia. The film took 10 years to complete and was Wenders most ambitious project.
The movie is a semi science-fiction-road-movie-love-story using the idea of a dream machine as both a philosophical plot device and a vehicle for describing people’s differing perceptions, although I always saw it as more of a memory device that highlighted the problems of succumbing to nostalgia. It is also a link between an estranged father and son and mother. The movie is strong and layered with many aspects of the story allowing for multiple readings.
Until The End Of The World also has one of the best movie soundtracks of the time with mostly original or unknown songs from some of Wenders favourite artists including Lou Reed, Nick Cave, Depeche Mode, Neneh Cherry, U2, Jane Siberry with k. d. lang, Elvis Costello, Patti Smith, Talking Heads and Can.
Just last year a new four and a half hour version was released in the US, as reviewed in The Village Voice and The Guardian. With some luck we might get to see it in Australia too.
There will be more Wim Wenders films in future posts…
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