Synopsis:
Director Gerhard Lamprecht built on his successes of the 1920's and 30's with this 1946 film Somewhere in Berlin, his first film after the Second World War. Before the war, he was famous for his socially critical Berlin films, which were based on the popular drawings by Heinrich Zille. Lamprecht brought the world of prostitutes, beggars, and day laborers to the screen. Somewhere in Berlin is about the everyday people. The film takes place in the ruined landscape of Berlin, in which children play with undetonated bombs and climb around in the rubble. One boy is disappointed with his father, who comes home a broken man from a POW camp. The children convince this weary man to clean and restore his damaged garage, an act which in the end gives him new hope. Lamprecht wanted this story to urge his audience to take similar action. This film realistically portrays the people of this shattered society with psychological precision. A subplot, the chase after a thief, is reminiscent of Lamprecht's biggest success of the 1930's - the children's film Emil and the Detectives, written by Billy Wilder and based on the Erich Kaestner novel. Film historian Lotte Eisner rated Somewhere in Berlin above Germany, Year Zero (1948), an important neo-realist film by Italian filmmaker Roberto Rossellini.

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