this is an excellent film, with great performances all around (and while the actress who plays ulrike meinhof, martina gedeck, is wonderful, i was disappointed that Jasmin Tabatabai, who i believe played ulrike in a stage play, had only an incredibly brief role as an extra). the riot and demonstration scenes are compelling and intense and add greatly to the film's appeal. the film is also more objective than you might imagine, and certainly doesn't gloss over the sadness of the RAF's collateral damage and the irony in the fact that in turning revolutionary to protest the return of fascism, the RAF brought it on themselves. my only complaints are that after a two and a half hour time investment the film ends far too quickly and the second and third RAF movements are pretty glossed over--and yes, i understand this is a drama and not a documentary. frankly i'm looking forward to the four-hour director's cut with documentary bonus features! ; ) all in all, great movie. see it.

long, but important story that is relevant to what is going on in the world today.

The Baader Meinhof Complex is about a German terrorist organization that operated from the late 1960s to the mid 1970s. During this time frame I was a child and recall many of the events from the film being discussed on television news programs. My child's mind never fully understood these events so I enjoyed this film for clearing up the details I missed in my youth. I just hope it's historically accurate. If you weren't there you really never know who's telling the whole truth about what happened. This German terrorist group, the Red Army Faction, claimed to be fighting fascism. But they trained with Muslim terrorists (early Al Queda?) and seemed more self-serving than fighting for a cause. They murdered judges and attorneys who prosecuted them. One can't help wondering, which side were these people really on? In any case, this is a well done dramatic action film that holds your interest and gives you something to think about.

Kudos to the producers/directors for takling on such a topic at this time. For me the movie lacked some depth and it was a little drawn out. Still, with this in mind, the history is accurate and well worth seeing. Superb acting performances. The film reminds me of the recent student demonstrations in Iran and the underlying plays of politics. Meinhoff being a journalist with a conscience, Baader being a glorified "nutter", the film left me feeling almost sorry for Meinhoff as her insight was good, she just stepped too far in a negative direction ending in her own destruction. Never a good move. For what? She could have used her journalistic prowess to achieve more. The film is quite "telling" in it's protrayal of politics then and now, the usual suspects, idealistic or angry uni. students being roused by foreign underlying powers.Interesting in that the group grew more radical after Meinhoff/Baader were jailed, reminiscent of the Shining Path who appear to be making a comeback.

Well acted and written. Very interesting but would benefit from editing it to a shorter length.