Germany, 2007, 90 Minute Running Time
Language: English, Spanish, German English Subtitles
DIRECTOR: Leopold Gru"n
Producer: Thomas Janze Editor: Dirk Uhlig Cinematographer: Thomas Janze
June 17, 1986: a body is dragged out of a lake in East Berlin. It’s identified as Dean Reed, a 47-year-old, Colorado-born singer and actor whose mysterious life remains the stuff of global pop-culture legend – and serves as the subject of this spellbinding documentary from German filmmaker Leopold Gru"n.
In 1962 – having attained only marginal success in the music business at home – Reed traveled to South America, where he became a major pop success. Embracing leftist politics along the way, he counted among his close friends Chilean president Salvador Allende and activist folk singer Victor Jara – through whose Moscow connections he soon achieved superstardom in the Eastern Bloc as well. Settling in the German Democratic Republic, Reed released a steady stream of hit records both there and in the Soviet Union and became the first American rock musician to perform regularly behind the Iron Curtain – all while starring in his share of spaghetti Westerns. But he never abandoned his American citizenship; on the contrary, Reed dreamed of returning to the United States as a spokesman for world peace. A stateside comeback appeared all but impossible in the twilight of the Cold War, however – which also cast an eerie glow upon his untimely death.
Gru"n weaves extensive archival footage of Reed and interviews with those who knew him best – not only his many lovers but also former GDR leader Egon Krenz and Denver radio host Peter Broyles – into a compellingly thorough examination of Dean Reed's life and legacy.
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