QUESTIONS
1. What do drugs mean to Ickarus?
2. Why, when, and how are his fans taking drugs, and which drugs do they take?
3. While we can see that his drug habits get him ill and into a psychosis, and while we witness his relapse and inability to work successfully, why does the subculture Ickarus is in focus on drugs?
4. Compare the standards you know from your home society with the people you see depicted in this movie. Which are the stark differences and contrasts?
5. Germany is considered a strong industrial nation the world over. Do you think that the youth culture as depicted here could change that? How about work ethics of Ickarus and of Alice, the label director who fires and then re-signs him?
6. Which similar "cult movies" of US origin have you seen, if any?
ANSWERS
1. When he takes drugs, he is using them to "relax." Later in the movie we find out he is newly-diagnosed with schizophrenia.
2. Fans and friends take the drugs whenever they are in a club setting. I am not sure why they take them other than to get high or increase their sensations. Mostly cocaine is what they are snorting, Ickarus took a pill (or several) that contained PMA which is a strong hallucinagen and many other components that put him into the hospital.
3. The subculture does the drugs to relax, escape, and imagine better places and experience things differently-- it seems that Ickarus' music displays his highs and lows (trips) he experiences, avoiding real life.
4. From what I have seen and continue to see in my society is marjuana use and alcohol use. I do not see the heavy usage of either of these drugs. A stark difference between both societies is the fact that "over there" it seems to be more widely dispersed and used, whereas here I do not see it as much, if at all because I am not looking for it.
5. I do not think the youth culture depicted in the movie could change the way Germany is considered, unless a majority of the youth are just like Ickarus ad his peers. The work ethics of Ickarus and Alice is very unprofessional. They are very impulsive and do not think things through which could cause problems when the wrong impulsive decision is made.
6. I do not recall any "cult movies" of U.S. origin that I have seen.
REACTION
At first, when the movie started I had no idea that it was going to be about drug use to the extent that it was. The intro was slow at getting started to the film and I did not believe it could or would keep my attention because I am not interested in the club or music scene all that much. Once the movie got going, it grabbed my interest and it kept me watching. The whole movie, to me, was pretty unpredictable in the sense that I did not think Ickarus would call “entertainers” or whatever the lesser evil of prostitutes is, into the hospital for the other patients. Also, I did not think that Ickarus would recover (at the ending so far) from his addictions and also get back together with his girlfriend especially after she got with her best lesbian friend.
The cultural differences I noticed were the openness of sexuality and the music/club scene. I knew that in Europe they are more open with their sexuality and the human body is an art form and sex is a lot more socially acceptable there than here. The music and club scene, from what I have experienced, is different from here because the techno music seems to be like the United States’ rap music where it is more popular amongst the younger generations.
Overall, I am glad that this movie was shown in class. It was relevant to the course and it was a lot more entertaining than the presentations that we normally give and watch and it was a better choice than “All Quiet on the Western Front” because it was made during our time and reflected the youth subculture only in another part of the world. Of course not all younger people in Germany are like Ickarus and his friends, but it showed us that there are similarities and differences between two diverse countries.
