In the film Good Bye, Lenin! a devoted East German socialist falls into a coma. Then the Berlin Wall comes down. When she wakes, her son hides all signs of the new capitalist dispensation to avoid shocking her back into unconsciousness. Commie-era furniture is salvaged for their home. Advertisements (“Trink Coca-Cola”) are explained away. Above all, TV news broadcasts are faked.
Today, if a beloved relative came around after a long sleep, would you need to bother? The news is so evocative of yesteryear anyway.
