5 best German comedies for learning the language / Nemački Svuda

If you're a comedy fan, like me, then the movies I'm sharing below will definitely not disappoint you! Watching movies is a perfect way to enjoy humor while also naturally learning new words and phrases in German. Could there be a better combination for learning?

Before we move on to the recommendations, I'll share with you a golden tip: active listening is the key to success! The German language is full of nuances, and passive listening (when the movie is just background noise) is not enough for real progress.

How to effectively learn German through movies?

• Pay attention to intonation and everyday context.

• Take note of new expressions that you can use in conversation.

• Focus on the pronunciation of the actors.

1. Soul Kitchen

This comedy directed by Fatih Akin offers a lively and chaotic look at running a restaurant in modern, multicultural Hamburg.

The main character Zinos, a German-Greek restaurant owner, goes through a series of troubles: from back problems to his girlfriend leaving for Shanghai. The film is full of great colloquial speech that will help you understand modern German slang. A great movie if your German learning plan includes understanding different dialects and slang.

2. Good Bye Lenin

Good Bye Lenin is a brilliant film full of subtle comedic elements, candid family connections and witty political satire. It shows the fall of socialism and the ongoing longing for a GDR that no longer exists. Again and again, fairy-tale elements interweave with reality, the personal with the political, creating a perfect allegory of the dreams and delusions that many systems are based on today. In short, Good Bye Lenin is a film worth seeing.

3. Sonnenallee

Another film depicting life in East Berlin in the late 1970s. The film was directed by Leander Haussmann, and was released just before the novel Am kuzeren ende der Sonnenallee, which is based on similar events. The screenplay of the film as well as the novel was written by Thomas Brussig, who emphasizes the importance of pop art, and especially pop music, for the youth of East Berlin. By the way, Sonnenalle is a real street in Berlin that was crossed by the border between East and West at the time of the Berlin Wall. If you are interested in learning German quickly through authentic dialogues of young people, Sonnenallee is a must-see.

4. The Edukators

Maybe comedy is not the right description for this masterpiece, but you will definitely find hidden satire in many scenes of this movie. Peter and Jan are 'educators', anarchists who break into rich people's homes, never steal, but give notice that their days are numbered. But since they're playing with fire like this, it's inevitable that things will get out of hand at some point. It is ideal for those who are taking an advanced German course (B2/C1) and want to practice argumentation and expressing opinions in a foreign language.

5. Toni Erdman

Toni Erdmann is a 2016 German-Austrian comedy-drama directed, written and co-produced by Maren Ada. It premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was named the best film of 2016 by Sight & Sound as well as other respected magazines. This German comedy shows heavy humor and great pathos in the surreal collision between father and daughter. And believe me, crash is the right word to describe this movie. Through the comical and absurd situations of the father and daughter, you will see the contrast between the relaxed speech and the business German that the daughter uses in the corporate world.

Learning German doesn't have to be hard!

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