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© 2026 The Couch Critic
Browse 33 movies from SWR/Arte
At the dawn of World War II, a young motorcycle courier in the Austrian army encounters a wounded fox cub and takes it with him to occupied France. The soldier and the fox develop an unlikely bond. Based on the true story of Franz Streitberger, director Adrian Goiginger’s great-grandfather.
Apr 2023
1895. The son of a wealthy industrialist, Hermann has known twins Emil and Klara von Schönaich since childhood. By marrying his friend Klara, the young man would join the nobility, while the von Schönaichs would be able to maintain their extravagant lifestyle thanks to his fortune. But the twins don't see it that way...
Aug 2023
The documentary begins when the fictionalized drama ends. Sara spent three years volunteering to save refugees on the same journey that made her so famous, and was suddenly arrested in Aug. 2018, accused by Greek authorities of running a criminal enterprise with charges including “international espionage and people smuggling.” If convicted, she faces up to 25 years in prison and the end of her humanitarian career. Shot over three years, the film follows Sara’s fight for justice and journey of self-discovery.
Mar 2023
Until 1992, Russia disposed of radioactive wastewater, radioactive waste and explosive nuclear waste in the Arctic Sea. And the ailing Northern Fleet was sunk here along with a no longer usable nuclear submarine. To this day it lies rusting on the bottom of the Arctic next to two other boats that have sunk in accidents, together with dangerous radioactive nuclear weapons. They form an atomic time bomb, even if official Russian authorities stubbornly deny an acute danger.
Apr 2013
Wiebke, a professional horse trainer, faces a unique challenge when she adopts Raya, a five-year-old girl, who is prone to violent outbursts because of her traumatic past.
Sep 2020
Four convicted violent criminals, three highly aggressive dogs and a woman who is ready to fight against the cycle of violence and rigid institutions. But above all against her own doubts about redemption from evil.
Aug 2020
Carla's daily life is thrown off when she receives an unexpected visit from her daughter Feline, whom she has lost sight of for some time. While searching for Carla's swarmed bees together, the two different women get closer again.
Apr 2021
In the 17th century, advances in the natural sciences and the invention of the telescope led Dutch women painters to closely study nature and include reptiles and insects in their art. Women such as Maria Sibylla Merian, Alida Withoos and Maria Moninckx advanced botany and zoology with their highly detailed paintings. Almost forgotten, now their works hang in many important museums around the world.
Jun 2026
This is the story of a vegetable garden, from the first seeds to the harvest. But this garden is different, because here the gardener has decided to banish pesticides and other chemicals, and to be helped only by discreet workers, the insects. As we dive into the heart of this plant kingdom, we discover thousands of tiny lives that organize themselves as in a micro-society: decomposing insects, recyclers, pollinators, the workers of the garden work to maintain a fragile balance within the vegetable garden. As the plants grow and begin to produce their first vegetables, the incredible interactions between insects and plants help protect the future harvest. But it is also their personal stories that punctuate the life of the garden. Between parades, mutual aid and attempted putsch, the story of the vegetable garden thus takes the form of a true nature tale.
May 2022
Jun 2024
The uptight Jewish finance director of a lavish Baroque court unexpectedly finds himself forced to convince his hot-headed young ruler to get a circumcision. He meets the temperamental ducal couple for an uncomfortable cup of tea, desperate to circumvent a genitalia-induced national crisis.
Oct 2020
In a vegetable garden, four vegetables find that their good gardener, who has come to harvest them, has forgotten them. A small carrot, a timid leek and a cunning broccoli decide to send Patate, the fourth of the gang, as a scout...
Jan 2000
Seventeen-year-old Charles from New York is supposed to do an exchange with a family of musicians in Berlin at the request of his two mothers. But instead of ending up in the capital, Charles finds himself in the depths of the Black Forest, where Western fan and gun enthusiast Fränk runs a cattle farm, living his very own dream of freedom and adventure. Charles is confronted with an image of America that is completely foreign to him, and he wants only one thing: to get away!
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In 2019, the Chippendales celebrated their 40th birthday. The documentary observes the troupe and takes a look behind the scenes of the successful show for the first time. And it asks what fascinates the female clientele about these well-trained dancers to this day.
Oct 2019
The child prodigy turns 60! At the tender age of 13, Anne-Sophie Mutter was discovered by star conductor Herbert von Karajan. An unprecedented world career followed. She once said of herself: "If you want to get to know me, you have to experience me on stage". She does not appreciate questions about her private life. So how do you portray such an exceptional artist?
The biography of Hildegard Knef – born in Ulm in 1925, died in Berlin in 2002 – reflects post-war and divided Germany. It also reflects the vitality, hypocrisy, and sensationalism of our society and the media that feeds it. The film features numerous original interviews with Knef, excerpts from feature films, concert recordings that testify to her stage presence, which is still incredible today, as well as TV reports from Berlin, New York, and elsewhere. In addition to her, friends and relatives, contemporary witnesses, colleagues, and journalists also have their say.
Sep 2025
Simple Plan concert filmed at the Southside Festival 2024 in Germany.
Gabin, the youngest child of the Jourdel family, is set to take over his father's butcher shop. Torn between family loyalty and a desire to break free, he has other dreams.
Nov 2026
The Verfassungsschutz wants to be an "early warning system" against the dangers to our democracy. Critics accuse the intelligence service of being "blind in the right eye". But how does the agency deal with the increasing networking of new right-wing extremist groups and the new virtual threat?