The State of Things

Original title: Der Stand der Dinge

1982
2h 1m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

The crew is running out of money to finish their film.The crew is running out of money to finish their film.The crew is running out of money to finish their film.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.9/10

3.7K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 4 wins & 1 nomination

Top cast21

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Allen Garfield

Gordon

Samuel Fuller

Isabelle Weingarten

Anna

Rebecca Pauly

Joan

Jeffrey Kime

Mark

Geoffrey Carey

Robert

Camila Mora-Scheihing

Julia
(as Camila Mora)

Alexandra Auder

Jane

Patrick Bauchau

Friedrich Munro

John Paul Getty III

Dennis
(as J. Paul Getty III)

Viva

Kate

Artur Semedo

Production Manager

Francisco Baião

Soundman

Robert Kramer

Camera Operator

Roger Corman

The Lawyer

Gisela Getty

Secretary
(as Martina Getty)

Monty Bane

Herbert

Janet Graham

Karen
(as Janet Rasak)

Director
- Wim Wenders
Writers
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Samuel Fuller's character is a cameraman named Joe. Fuller named him in honor of his friend and longtime cinematographer, Joseph F. Biroc.

Goofs
All entries contain spoilers

Quotes
Mark: You know, I take pictures, photographs, but I never really thought in black and white before I saw our rushes. Do you know what I mean? You can see the shape of things.
Joe: Life is in colour, but black and white is more realistic.

Crazy credits
When the opening credits finally appear(about 10 minutes into the film), they appear letter by letter as if typed by a typewriter. When the credits completely fill the screen, the camera pans to the left, wiping the credits off the screen.

Alternate versions
The sci-fi introduction of the German edit is tainted in brown. This edit is also 12 seconds shorter. At 37'03", the Cornelita song has only one verse.

Connections
Featured in Reverse Angle: Ein Brief aus New York (1982)

Soundtracks
Standin' at the Big Hotel
By Joe Ely
Courtesy of MCA Records

waiting for the end of the virtual world

Between commercial successes like Paris Texas and Angels over Berlin, Wenders still manages to make the kind of seemingly irrelevant road movies such as Santiago and State of Things, that have made him the cult hero he is. Here a cheesy scifi B-movie is interrupted at a climatic scene to follow people just hanging around talking. Which is more cinematic is a question that comes back over and over again. Actively pursuing a life, no matter how mundane or screwed up, seems to be more rewarding than passively waiting to have someone else fulfill your fantasies, or so this film seems to hint. Good film for those still in love with non virtual reality.