Bruno (Vogler) travels around West Germany repairing film projectors in rural cinemas and living out of his beaten-up old van. He meets Robert (Zischler), a depressed psychologist who drives his car into a river in a half-hearted suicide attempt. They become road mates and travel along the East German border from one small town to the next, slowly and reluctantly getting to know one another.

Retroactively dubbed the final third of Wenders’ road movie trilogy, this laconic exploration of male friendship is a paragon of New German Cinema. Wenders, working with cinematographer Robby Müller, shot chronologically, with no real script and a miniscule budget. The result is a plot-free meandering around a country recently divided, where Americana is encroaching and film itself is an endangered species. This time capsule of a travelogue represents Wenders at his very best. Take to the “Road.”