The Lives of Others

The Lives of Others (German: Das Leben der Anderen, pronounced ) is a 2006 German drama film written and directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, marking his feature film directorial debut. The story centres around the covert audio surveillance of East Berlin residents by a senior operative of the Stasi, the secret police of the former East Germany (German Democratic Republic). It stars Ulrich Mühe as Stasi Captain Gerd Wiesler, Ulrich Tukur as his superior Anton Grubitz, Sebastian Koch as the playwright Georg Dreyman, and Martina Gedeck as Dreyman's lover, a prominent actress named Christa-Maria Sieland. The film was released by Buena Vista International in Germany on 23 March 2006 and by Sony Pictures Classics in North America on 7 February 2007. At the same tim