Er drehte zwei der bekanntesten ,,Berlin Filme." Weil Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser, eine der ,,Berlin Filme," umstritten war, hatte Klein viele Probleme mit dem Staat: ,,Klein and Kohlhaase didn't abide strictly to SED video restrictions because of 'the transformation from overt anti-Wester propaganda to criticism and analysis of the GDR's social and political system'" (Claus, 94). Kunst, darunter auch Film, wurde als Drohung gesehen, weil Filme für die Massen waren. Wolfgag Kohlhaase, der mit Gerhard Klein arbeitete, sagte:

We had a saying: when there is a shortage of potatoes, there are sure to be some major discussions about art. The banning of ten films in 1965 was intended to impose some discipline on society when the country was going through a difficult time, politically and economically. The politicians used art as a medium for expressing concerns they did not dare to tackle directly. This had the effect of bestowing a greater importance on art. The lack of public discussion, which increased over the years, led the public to seek questions and answers in films and books or in the theatre (Kohlhaase, 123).