Netflix's German original 'We Are The Wave' offers a strong mix of vigilantism and revolt
In 1981, American writer Todd Strasser wrote the young adult novel 'The Wave' under the pen name Morton Rhue.
Strasser's book was a novelization of a teleplay by Johnny Dawkins for the 1981 made-for-TV movie directed by Alex Grasshoff. It carried a fictionized account of the 'Third Wave' experimental social movement created by Ron Jones in 1967. The experiment focused on creating a social movement as a demonstration of the appeal of fascism and in a way hoped to offer students an understanding of how the German population could accept the actions of the Nazi regime during the Second World War. This teaching experiment was conducted by Ron Jones and took place in Ellwood P Cubberley High School history class in Palo Alto, California. The book revolves around a history teacher's attempts at showing his students what it would have been like to live in Third Reich Germany.
The book won the 1981 Massachusetts Book Award for Children's/Young Adult Literature and is the source for Netflix's upcoming German original 'We Are The Wave'/ 'Wir sind die Welle'.
This series follows a group of teenagers who are pursuing the dream of a better future, led by a new and mysterious classmate named Tristan Broch. Angry at the social ills ailing their society, the teenagers no longer want to just accept things for what they are. And so they decide to do something about it. What begins as an idealistic and playful revolt against the establishment, however, soon develops into a threatening momentum. But does the purpose really justify the means?
Strasser's story fuses the themes of corruption of power, of history repeating itself and fitting in. A movement is not a movement without people, which remains one of the main underlying themes of the story. The reason that the wave is such a success is that people were made to feel like they belonged to a cause that is much larger than themselves. Others who weren't clear on the movement happened to join in not wanting to miss out on being a part of a fad - the blind leading the blind.
The Netflix series is directed by Anca Miruna Lăzărescu and Mark Monheim and star Luise Belfort, Ludwig Simon, Michelle Barthel, Daniel Friedl and Mohamed Issa in prominent roles. A thrilling trailer gives us an insight into the rebellious world of 'We Are The Wave'. Offering a strong mix of vigilantism and revolt, the series asks "How loud do we have to be to wake everyone up?"
The movement begins small but with more and more teenagers joining in, it soon gathers deadly momentum. "And at some point, the wave will become a huge tsunami," predicts a character in the trailer.
'We are the Wave'/ 'Wir sind die Welle' releases on Netflix on November 1, 2019.