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William S. Burroughs in a German cyberpunk thriller about muzak mind control? Buckle up.
TMDB
62
Rotten Tomatoes
50
Audience Score
50
Watch(US)

Decoder (1984)

DIY industrialparanoid as hellso 80s it hurts

Overview

HorrorScience FictionMystery

F.M. discovers that different sonic frequencies induce different patterns of behaviour in listeners, first in his own studio but later in the local "H-Burger" restaurant where the passive muzak appears to be wiping people's emotions.

Flag of DEDEGerman
Content warning
media manipulationconsumerist sedationsonic warfarerebellion through noise

Standout Aspects

Score

FM Einheit's actual industrial noise collages — no fake movie music here.

Production

Shot in actual squats with real underground legends, not hired extras.

Best for:Solo: Late night, headphones, questioning every corporate playlist you've ever heard.·Rewatch: Spot the Einstürzende Neubauten cameos and industrial scene Easter eggs.
Heads up:Disturbing: Live animal experimentation scenes, including frog dissection and insect torture.
Muscha

Director

Muscha

ReleasedFeb 19, 1984
Runtime1h 27m
StatusReleased

Vibe

Paceslow
Intensitymedium
Tonedark
Feelmedium
Fett Film

Top Cast

FM Einheit

FM Einheit

F.M.

William Rice

William Rice

Jaeger

Christiane Felscherinow

Christiane Felscherinow

Christiana

William S. Burroughs

William S. Burroughs

Old Man

Genesis P-Orridge

Genesis P-Orridge

High Priest

Ralf Richter

Ralf Richter

Jaeger's Assistant

Matthias Fuchs

Matthias Fuchs

H-Burger Manager

Alexander Hacke

Alexander Hacke

Pirate

Mona Mur

Mona Mur

Pirate

Ask about Decoder

Opens AI chat

Deep Dive

Trivia, insights & behind the scenes

Trivia

Christiane F. was already famous from her autobiography 'We Children from Zoo Station' about heroin addiction; this was her wild left-turn into experimental film.

Cultural

The 'H-Burger' restaurant was a real location in Hamburg's red-light district, and the film's crew were mostly actual squatters and musicians from the Geniale Dilettanten scene.

YouTube

Decoder (1984) Trailer

Decoder (1984) Trailer

Gallery

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