Wings of Desire
A melancholic urban fantasy where shimmering monochrome angels drift through divided Berlin, listening to the silent prayers of a fragmented humanity until a divine watcher risks eternity for the vibrant ache of mortal love.
Wings of Desire
Wings of Desire

Der Himmel über Berlin

"There are angels on the streets of Berlin."

23 September 1987 Germany 128 min ⭐ 7.8 (1,444)
Director: Wim Wenders
Cast: Bruno Ganz, Solveig Dommartin, Otto Sander, Curt Bois, Peter Falk
Drama Fantasy Romance
Mortality vs. Immortality The Burden of History Observation and Perception Innocence and Childhood
Budget: $2,500,000
Box Office: $3,210,139

Wings of Desire - Movie Quotes

Memorable Quotes

Als das Kind noch Kind war, ging es mit hängenden Armen, wollte der Bach sei ein Fluß, der Fluß ein Strom, und diese Pfütze das Meer.

— Narrator / Damiel

Context:

Repeated as a motif throughout the film to represent the perspective of the 'inner child' and the angels.

Meaning:

This opening line of the 'Song of Childhood' poem captures the essence of unbridled imagination and the lost state of innocence the film mourns.

I can't see you, but I know you're here. I feel it.

— Peter Falk

Context:

Falk addresses the invisible Damiel at a coffee stand, offering him his hand as a 'companero.'

Meaning:

A pivotal moment where the barrier between the seen and unseen is bridged through human intuition rather than sight.

To guess, instead of always knowing.

— Damiel

Context:

Damiel explaining to Cassiel why he wants to descend and become mortal.

Meaning:

Expresses the angel's desire to trade his absolute, divine knowledge for the excitement and risk of human uncertainty.