Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- mordant
- paranoid
- irreverent
- arthouse film night
- political cinema screening
What critics said
Critics broadly regard Fassbinder's politically provocative satire as a formally exciting and frightening examination of terrorism, capitalism, and institutional manipulation, despite its divisive reception.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The plot turns terrorism and corporate manipulation into a sharply comic satire of West German power structures.
Peter Lenz funds terrorists to stimulate computer sales by provoking government and industrial panic.
The third generation of left-wing activists emerges after the Red Army Faction has been crippled, inheriting a weakened political legacy.
The politically provocative plot, Carnival Tuesday setting, and heightened Fassbinder staging create an intentionally artificial, unsettling surface.
Films like The Third Generation, and why
The Baader Meinhof Complex
political terrorism satire, mordant humor, and confrontational european art-house style
Germany in Autumn
radical political violence, institutional paranoia, and intense german new wave filmmaking
The King of Comedy
darkly comic political provocation, criminal conspiracies, and stylized social critique
Movie Details
- Director
- Rainer Werner Fassbinder
- Release Date
- 1979-05-30
- Runtime
- 110 min
- Rating
- 6.0 / 10 (52)
Cast
- Harry Baer
- Hark Bohm
- Margit Carstensen
- Eddie Constantine
- Jürgen Draeger
- Udo Kier
- Volker Spengler
- Hanna Schygulla
- Bulle Ogier
- Günther Kaufmann
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Criterion Channel
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Third Generation about?
- A mordantly comic West German conspiracy film where corporate panic and revolutionary violence become mutually profitable performances.
- What is The Third Generation like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Third Generation as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Third Generation violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in The Third Generation as moderate.
- What did critics think of The Third Generation?
- Critics broadly regard Fassbinder's politically provocative satire as a formally exciting and frightening examination of terrorism, capitalism, and institutional manipulation, despite its divisive reception.
- Which films are like The Third Generation?
- Films with a similar feel include The Baader Meinhof Complex, Germany in Autumn, and The King of Comedy.
- How long is The Third Generation?
- The Third Generation runs 110 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Third Generation?
- In United States, The Third Generation streams on Criterion Channel.
