History YMMV / GoodByeLenin

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mo59IyQbro&list=RD6mo59IyQbro#t=3 The main theme]], which plays when Alex's mother sneaks out and sees for herself how Berlin has changed.

* AcceptableTargets:
** Punk culture, if a tasteless party Alex and his girlfriend attend is anything to go by.
** Consumer culture and Western style marketing gets portrayed in bizarre and ridiculous fashion.

* TearJerker: Several moments, but the biggest is the ending, [[spoiler: when Alex and the others hold a funeral for his mother and he comments on how he'll remember her and the country she was part of and died with. All while old footage of East Germany streets and his mother and sister at summer camp is shown]].
** Alex and Ariane progressively finding out that [[spoiler: that their father didn't abandon them willingly but it was their mother who decided not to join him along with the family out of fear. He has been writing them letters for all those years and they never received them.]]

* JerkassHasAPoint:
** '''Alex:''' Inverted. For someone who claims to be doing the right thing he comes across as a jerkass about it, and may even be totally misguided.
** '''Ariane:''' As far as she's concerned, she's trying her best to build a new life along with her boyfriend and to do the best for her daughter; and has a point when she's frustrated with Alex's scheme, given how totally unrealistic it proves and how [[spoiler: it's actually the painful memories of separation and how they were treated by the regime that kills their mother in the end, not its surprise downfall- she might have been better off in hospital.]]
** '''Rainer:''' Despite his portrayal (from Alex's viewpoint) as an entitled, unconcerned Wessi, like Ariane his life has basically been turned upside down by Alex's schemes, seems quite fair in protesting things like the fact he's been paying the rent, genuinely has no reason given his upbringing to see why the East Germans around him are constantly complaining, and does his best to play along and do the "right thing".
** '''The new doctor:''' It's not his fault that his predecessor moved to the West, and is only giving his professional opinion, [[spoiler: which by the end would seem to be right.]]
** '''The bank employees:''' It's not the clerk's fault that he can't exchange the family's life savings- he doesn't make the rules, and doesn't personally deserve the harassment from angry East Germans.. Likewise, the security guards who throw Alex out are only doing their jobs.

* RetroactiveRecognition: Thanks to Creator/DanielBruhl's brilliant career in TheNewTens, you'll probaly recognise Alex as Pvt Zoller from ''Film/InglouriousBasterds'', UsefulNotes/NikiLauda from ''Film/Rush2013'' or Helmut Zemo from ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''.

** '''The new doctor:''' It's not his fault that his predecessor moved to the West, and is only giving his professional opinion, [[spoiler: which by the end would seem to be right.]

** '''Rainer:''' Despite his portrayal (from Alex's [=POV=]) as an entitled, unconcerned Wessi, like Ariane his life has basically been turned upside down by Alex's schemes, seems quite fair in protesting things like the fact he's been paying the rent, genuinely has no reason given his upbringing to see why the East Germans around him are constantly complaining, and does his best to play along and do the "right thing".

** '''Rainer:''' Despite his portrayal as an entitled, unconcerned Wessi, like Ariane his life has basically been turned upside down by Alex's schemes, seems quite fair in protesting things like the fact he's been paying the rent, genuinely has no reason given his upbringing to see why the East Germans around him are constantly complaining, and does his best to play along and do the "right thing".

** '''The new doctor:''' It's not his fault that his predecessor moved to the West, and is only giving his professional opinion, [[[spoiler: which by the end would seem to be right.]