Netflix has released its weekly Top 10 global streaming charts for the week of March 13, which includes both original productions and other films and series airing on the streamer across the globe.
Idris Elba‘s “Luther: The Fallen Sun” remained atop the charts of English-language films with another 69.5 million hours viewed. That comes to 62 million views over the film’s first two weeks on the streamer, dividing the 135.5 million hours viewed by the film’s 2.2-hour runtime. The movie remained in the Top 10 for 93 countries and was #1 in a good amount of them, showing the global appeal of Elba’s character.
Vanessa Jopp‘s dramedy “Faraway” was once again in second place with 14.8 million hours viewed, while Netflix’s animated film “The Magician’s Elephant,” based on Kate Dicamillo‘s novel, entered the charts in third place with 13.7 million hours viewed, both of those in the Top 10 for 70+ countries. Meanwhile, maybe it...
Idris Elba‘s “Luther: The Fallen Sun” remained atop the charts of English-language films with another 69.5 million hours viewed. That comes to 62 million views over the film’s first two weeks on the streamer, dividing the 135.5 million hours viewed by the film’s 2.2-hour runtime. The movie remained in the Top 10 for 93 countries and was #1 in a good amount of them, showing the global appeal of Elba’s character.
Vanessa Jopp‘s dramedy “Faraway” was once again in second place with 14.8 million hours viewed, while Netflix’s animated film “The Magician’s Elephant,” based on Kate Dicamillo‘s novel, entered the charts in third place with 13.7 million hours viewed, both of those in the Top 10 for 70+ countries. Meanwhile, maybe it...
- 3/22/2023
- by Edward Douglas
- Gold Derby
Netflix has released its weekly Top 10 global streaming charts for the week of March 6, which includes both Netflix productions and other films and series airing on the streamer across the globe.
Idris Elba returned as his popular BBC character Luther for Netflix’s “Luther: The Fallen Sun,” which debuted on the channel on March 10 and immediately entered the charts in first place with 65.9 total hours viewed. It was the #1 viewed movie in just about every country in which it was released, other than South Korea and a few other Asian countries.
Also entering the chart at #2 was Vanessa Jopp‘s dramedy “Faraway,” starring Naomi Krauss, which is partially in English. It claimed 21.8 million hours viewed, putting it into the top 10 in 76 countries.
See Netflix Oscar movies: 22 wins and counting
“We Have a Ghost” dropped to third place with 13.4 million hours viewed, followed by the first “The Hunger Games” movie, starring Jennifer Lawrence,...
Idris Elba returned as his popular BBC character Luther for Netflix’s “Luther: The Fallen Sun,” which debuted on the channel on March 10 and immediately entered the charts in first place with 65.9 total hours viewed. It was the #1 viewed movie in just about every country in which it was released, other than South Korea and a few other Asian countries.
Also entering the chart at #2 was Vanessa Jopp‘s dramedy “Faraway,” starring Naomi Krauss, which is partially in English. It claimed 21.8 million hours viewed, putting it into the top 10 in 76 countries.
See Netflix Oscar movies: 22 wins and counting
“We Have a Ghost” dropped to third place with 13.4 million hours viewed, followed by the first “The Hunger Games” movie, starring Jennifer Lawrence,...
- 3/14/2023
- by Edward Douglas
- Gold Derby
Faraway is a movie directed by Vanessa Jopp starring Naomi Krauss. With Goran Bogdan, Bahar Balci and Adnan Maral.
Far Far Away is a simple, simply scripted film that goes for the charming, tender, inner self and what is pure from the very beginning. Is it a completely made-for-tv film in its purest form? It has it all, yes, you choose whether you want to enjoy it or see it through sarcastic intellectual glasses.
About the Film
A film with its own name: Naomi Krauss, who has the whole movie to herself and shines in one of those roles that are a joy to play: a woman who rediscovers herself after escaping from an exhausting routine and environment.
You know what to expect: the initiation journey of a middle-aged woman who rediscovers herself and finds, of course, love in a new environment. A new idea? We’ve seen it a...
Far Far Away is a simple, simply scripted film that goes for the charming, tender, inner self and what is pure from the very beginning. Is it a completely made-for-tv film in its purest form? It has it all, yes, you choose whether you want to enjoy it or see it through sarcastic intellectual glasses.
About the Film
A film with its own name: Naomi Krauss, who has the whole movie to herself and shines in one of those roles that are a joy to play: a woman who rediscovers herself after escaping from an exhausting routine and environment.
You know what to expect: the initiation journey of a middle-aged woman who rediscovers herself and finds, of course, love in a new environment. A new idea? We’ve seen it a...
- 3/8/2023
- by Veronica Loop
- Martin Cid Magazine - Movies
The month of February ended with a number of newer Netflix releases dominating its weekly Top 10. Christopher Landon‘s horror film “We Have a Ghost,” starring David Harbour and Anthony Mackie, remained the #1 movie with 42.6 million hours viewed, placing in the Top 10 in 93 countries. Read on for the Netflix Top 10 (Week of February 27).
Nathaniel Martello-White‘s thriller “The Strays” remained in second place with 14.6 million views, while two action movies that bombed in theaters — 2007’s “The Condemned” (starring Jason Statham and Vinnie Jones) and 2013’s “R.I.P.D.” (starring Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds) — entered the Top 10 in third and fourth place. “R.I.P.D.” was actually tied with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s 2020 hit, “Bad Boys For Life,” with 8.3 million views.
See Netflix Oscar movies: 16 wins and counting
The crime-action series “Outer Banks,” starring Chase Stokes and Madelyn Cline, continues to be an enormous worldwide hit for Netflix. The third season topped...
Nathaniel Martello-White‘s thriller “The Strays” remained in second place with 14.6 million views, while two action movies that bombed in theaters — 2007’s “The Condemned” (starring Jason Statham and Vinnie Jones) and 2013’s “R.I.P.D.” (starring Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds) — entered the Top 10 in third and fourth place. “R.I.P.D.” was actually tied with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s 2020 hit, “Bad Boys For Life,” with 8.3 million views.
See Netflix Oscar movies: 16 wins and counting
The crime-action series “Outer Banks,” starring Chase Stokes and Madelyn Cline, continues to be an enormous worldwide hit for Netflix. The third season topped...
- 3/7/2023
- by Edward Douglas
- Gold Derby
"This simple life of yours is good." Netflix has revealed an official trailer for an indie film titled Faraway, a German production about a woman who escapes to a Croatian island to rediscover herself. It's the latest film from German director Vanessa Jopp, starring the Swiss actress Naomi Krauss as Zeynep. It'll be on Netflix starting March. "It's cold, winter feels eternal and many of us are yearning for a sense of happiness, and to feel the sunshine again – so why not just pack your suitcase and dare yourself to start over?" Zeynep is unhappy and her life has not turned out as she wanted... That's why she flees to a Croatian island, where her deceased mother bought a house long ago. She hopes to find peace and relaxation finally - but she hasn't reckoned with Josip, who still lives on the property. The film's cast also features Goran Bogdan,...
- 2/2/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
A total of 19 features and series were showcased.
Netflix has unveiled 19 upcoming films and series from Germany, Austria and Switzerland as it works to strengthen its slate of German-language productions.
The projects are part of the streaming giant’s push into local content, doubling investment to €500m between 2021 and 2023. Five films, nine series and five non-fiction titles were showcased at the streamer’s Content Remote Show this morning, offering a preview of the year ahead.
The films include the previously announced All Quiet On The Western Front, directed by Edward Berger and starring Daniel Bruhl, and Buba, a spin-off from...
Netflix has unveiled 19 upcoming films and series from Germany, Austria and Switzerland as it works to strengthen its slate of German-language productions.
The projects are part of the streaming giant’s push into local content, doubling investment to €500m between 2021 and 2023. Five films, nine series and five non-fiction titles were showcased at the streamer’s Content Remote Show this morning, offering a preview of the year ahead.
The films include the previously announced All Quiet On The Western Front, directed by Edward Berger and starring Daniel Bruhl, and Buba, a spin-off from...
- 2/8/2022
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Netflix has doubled its budget to €500 million ($571 million) for German-language productions between 2021 and 2023 and has revealed a raft of new projects.
On Tuesday, the Netflix German-language team presented a selection of 19 productions, including previously announced projects, at the Content Remote Show. The shows are from Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
New series include eight-parter “Achtsam Morden” (working title), based on the book of the same name by Karsten Dusse, which topped the Spiegel bestseller list for over nine months and is now being filmed for Netflix by Constantin Film, Jan Ehlert and Nina Viktoria Philipp. Writers Miriam Rechel and Chris Geletneky tell the story of top lawyer Björn Diemel, who to save his marriage, finds a new work-life balance with the help of a mindfulness seminar and accidentally becomes a murderer in the process.
Another book adaptation, also produced by Constantin Television, is thriller series “Liebes Kind” (working title). Based on the novel by Romy Hausmann,...
On Tuesday, the Netflix German-language team presented a selection of 19 productions, including previously announced projects, at the Content Remote Show. The shows are from Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
New series include eight-parter “Achtsam Morden” (working title), based on the book of the same name by Karsten Dusse, which topped the Spiegel bestseller list for over nine months and is now being filmed for Netflix by Constantin Film, Jan Ehlert and Nina Viktoria Philipp. Writers Miriam Rechel and Chris Geletneky tell the story of top lawyer Björn Diemel, who to save his marriage, finds a new work-life balance with the help of a mindfulness seminar and accidentally becomes a murderer in the process.
Another book adaptation, also produced by Constantin Television, is thriller series “Liebes Kind” (working title). Based on the novel by Romy Hausmann,...
- 2/8/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
A loving tribute to Studio Babelsberg, the story of a family’s escape from Nazi Germany, a moving drama about young Palestinians and Israelis working together, and an adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s children’s novel “The Amazing Maurice” are among a wide-ranging selection of German films on offer at Afm this year.
Leading sales companies are presenting the gamut of romantic dramas, arthouse works, high-profile literary adaptations, family films and animated pics.
Picture Tree Intl. presents Martin Schreier’s “Traumfabrik,” a period-piece love letter to East Germany’s famed Defa film studios, now known as Studio Babelsberg. Produced by the late Tom Zickler, the romantic drama follows a young studio extra’s ambitious efforts to reunite with the French girl he loves after being separated by the construction of the Berlin Wall. The film, which opens the 50th Goa Film Festival on Nov. 20, has already sold in major territories around the world,...
Leading sales companies are presenting the gamut of romantic dramas, arthouse works, high-profile literary adaptations, family films and animated pics.
Picture Tree Intl. presents Martin Schreier’s “Traumfabrik,” a period-piece love letter to East Germany’s famed Defa film studios, now known as Studio Babelsberg. Produced by the late Tom Zickler, the romantic drama follows a young studio extra’s ambitious efforts to reunite with the French girl he loves after being separated by the construction of the Berlin Wall. The film, which opens the 50th Goa Film Festival on Nov. 20, has already sold in major territories around the world,...
- 11/8/2019
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
“When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit,” directed by Caroline Link, an Oscar-winner with “Nowhere in Africa,” has attracted several presales ahead of its market premiere at Afm. The film’s sales agent, Beta Cinema, has also revealed a host of deals on other titles.
“Pink Rabbit,” an adaptation of the memoir of author and illustrator Judith Kerr — best-known for “The Tiger Who Came to Tea” — about her family’s flight from Germany as the Nazis rose to power, will have a wide release in Germany via Warner Bros. Sales agent Beta Cinema has pre-sold the film to Rai Cinema/01 (Italy), A Contracorriente (Spain), Huanxi Media Group (China), Moviecloud (Taiwan) and Blitz (former Yugoslavia).
Also on Beta’s slate is “Lara,” by Jan-Ole Gerster (“A Coffee in Berlin”), which piqued distributors’ interest following its premiere at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, where it won the Special Prize of the Jury and best actress for Corinna Harfouch.
“Pink Rabbit,” an adaptation of the memoir of author and illustrator Judith Kerr — best-known for “The Tiger Who Came to Tea” — about her family’s flight from Germany as the Nazis rose to power, will have a wide release in Germany via Warner Bros. Sales agent Beta Cinema has pre-sold the film to Rai Cinema/01 (Italy), A Contracorriente (Spain), Huanxi Media Group (China), Moviecloud (Taiwan) and Blitz (former Yugoslavia).
Also on Beta’s slate is “Lara,” by Jan-Ole Gerster (“A Coffee in Berlin”), which piqued distributors’ interest following its premiere at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, where it won the Special Prize of the Jury and best actress for Corinna Harfouch.
- 11/7/2019
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Komplizen Film will work on Vanessa Jopp’s adaptation of Daniel Glattauer novel.
Komplizen Film, the producer of Maren Ade’s offbeat comedy Toni Erdmann, is to partner with Sony Pictures on Vanessa Jopp’s forthcoming adaptation of Austrian writer Daniel Glattauer’s international bestseller Love Virtually.
Sony’s German production arm will serve as Komplizen Film’s co-producer alongside Erfttal Film, with Sony Pictures releasing the film theatrically in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Former European Shooting Star Alexander Fehling (Three Peaks) and Nora Tschirner (Rabbit Without Ears) are to headline the cast which will also include Swiss actress Ella Rumpf who appeared in last year’s Panorama title Tiger Girl.
UK-born, Hamburg-based screenwriter Jane Ainscough has adapted Glattauer’s epistolary novel about a love affair conducted entirely by email for Jopp, whose previous films include drama Happy As One.
“I would like to make a wonderful, warm and profound romantic film which will have poetic, magic moments...
Komplizen Film, the producer of Maren Ade’s offbeat comedy Toni Erdmann, is to partner with Sony Pictures on Vanessa Jopp’s forthcoming adaptation of Austrian writer Daniel Glattauer’s international bestseller Love Virtually.
Sony’s German production arm will serve as Komplizen Film’s co-producer alongside Erfttal Film, with Sony Pictures releasing the film theatrically in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Former European Shooting Star Alexander Fehling (Three Peaks) and Nora Tschirner (Rabbit Without Ears) are to headline the cast which will also include Swiss actress Ella Rumpf who appeared in last year’s Panorama title Tiger Girl.
UK-born, Hamburg-based screenwriter Jane Ainscough has adapted Glattauer’s epistolary novel about a love affair conducted entirely by email for Jopp, whose previous films include drama Happy As One.
“I would like to make a wonderful, warm and profound romantic film which will have poetic, magic moments...
- 2/16/2018
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov has been sentenced to 20 years in a verdict passed today (Aug 25) by a military court in Russia’s Rostov-on-Don.
His co-defendant, the activist and anti-fascist Alexander Kolchenko, was sentenced to 10 years.
The judge found Sentsov guilty of setting up a terrorist organisation and committing two terrorist acts.
When asked by the presiding judge Sergei Mikhailyuk whether they understood the verdicts, Sentsov and Kolchenko responded by defiantly singing the Ukrainian national anthem Ukraine Has Not Yet Died.
Sentsov, best known for his 2011 film Gamer, was arrested in May 2014 during a protest against Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula two months earlier.
The 39-year-old director was accused of plotting to blow up a monument to Lenin in Crimea and set fire to the Crimean offices of pro-Moscow political organisations.
The Ukrainian government said he is being punished for being a Crimea-based pro-Ukrainian activist. Russia denies claims he is a political prisoner.
Sentsov denies...
His co-defendant, the activist and anti-fascist Alexander Kolchenko, was sentenced to 10 years.
The judge found Sentsov guilty of setting up a terrorist organisation and committing two terrorist acts.
When asked by the presiding judge Sergei Mikhailyuk whether they understood the verdicts, Sentsov and Kolchenko responded by defiantly singing the Ukrainian national anthem Ukraine Has Not Yet Died.
Sentsov, best known for his 2011 film Gamer, was arrested in May 2014 during a protest against Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula two months earlier.
The 39-year-old director was accused of plotting to blow up a monument to Lenin in Crimea and set fire to the Crimean offices of pro-Moscow political organisations.
The Ukrainian government said he is being punished for being a Crimea-based pro-Ukrainian activist. Russia denies claims he is a political prisoner.
Sentsov denies...
- 8/25/2015
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s The Young and Prodigious Spivet will be the opening film at this year’s Filmfest München (June 27-July 5) after Jeunet previously kicked off the festival in Munich in 2001 with Amelie From Montmartre.
Special highlights at what will be Diana Iljine’s fourth outing as festival director include the first ever complete retrospective dedicated to the veteran Us director Walter Hill, a gala evening in honour of the Oscar-winning producer Arthur Cohn with a screening of The Children Of Huang Shi, and a tribute to the producer-director-cinematographer Willy Bogner.
The Walter Hill retrospective will range from his 1975 debut Hard Times, starring Charles Bronson and James Coburn, through such classics as The Long Riders and The Warriors and two films made for Us television - the pilot Deadwood and the Western epic Broken Trail - to his 2012 film Bullet To The Head, with Sylvester Stallone and Christian Slater.
World premieres
Munich will also be hosting a number...
Special highlights at what will be Diana Iljine’s fourth outing as festival director include the first ever complete retrospective dedicated to the veteran Us director Walter Hill, a gala evening in honour of the Oscar-winning producer Arthur Cohn with a screening of The Children Of Huang Shi, and a tribute to the producer-director-cinematographer Willy Bogner.
The Walter Hill retrospective will range from his 1975 debut Hard Times, starring Charles Bronson and James Coburn, through such classics as The Long Riders and The Warriors and two films made for Us television - the pilot Deadwood and the Western epic Broken Trail - to his 2012 film Bullet To The Head, with Sylvester Stallone and Christian Slater.
World premieres
Munich will also be hosting a number...
- 6/4/2014
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
The Berlin International Film Festival is celebrating its opening today, on February 7, 2013 at 7.30 pm. After a few words of greeting from Minister of State for Cultural and Media Affairs Bernd Neumann and Governing Mayor of Berlin Klaus Wowereit, the Festival will be officially opened by Jury President Wong Kar Wai (Hong Kong, China) and Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick. The International Jury – whose other members are Susanne Bier (Denmark), Andreas Dresen (Germany), Ellen Kuras (USA), Shirin Neshat (Iran), Tim Robbins (USA) and Athina Rachel Tsangari (Greece) – will also be introduced during the gala. Anke Engelke will again host the evening. This year’s music will be provided by Ulrich Tukur & Die Rhythmus Boys. 3sat will be broadcasting the opening live. Ziyi Zhang in Yi dai zong shi (The Grandmaster) by Wong Kar Wai Following the gala, Wong Kar Wai’s epic martial-arts drama The Grandmaster will have its international premiere. The director and his leading actors,...
- 2/7/2013
- by hnblog@hollywoodnews.com (Hollywood News Team)
- Hollywoodnews.com
COLOGNE, Germany -- Daniel Burman, the Argentine director who won two Silver Bears at Berlin in 2004 with his social-realist comedy "Lost Embrace", is returning to the festival to open this year's Panorama section with "Family Law". The family comedy-drama stars "Lost Embrace" leads Daniel Hendler and Adriana Aizenberg. The lineup for Berlin's Panorama sidebar, announced Monday, was typically eclectic. Stand-out titles include Neil Jordan's "Breakfast On Pluto", featuring Cillian Murphy as a cross-dresser in the midst of the Irish "troubles"; John Hillcoat's dark Australian Western "The Proposition", starring Guy Pearce, Emily Watson and Ray Winstone; and "Stay", the Ewan McGregor-Ryan Gosling thriller directed by German-born Marc Forster. German up-and-comers are represented with three titles: the media satire "Bye Bye Berlusconi" from Jan Henrik Stahlberg, Vanessa Jopp's improvisational drama "Happy As One" and Andres Veiel's "The Kick".
SCHEHERAZADE
Five people on a yacht in the waters off Zurich drink, smoke and make merry until disturbing, mood-shifting secrets are revealed in this intriguing Swiss production, the second feature by director Riccardo Signorell ("Eden"). Not a moment too long at 81 minutes and coming to an abrupt but satisfying end, "Scheherazade" centers on a successful businessman and his relationships with an artistic-minded son and beautiful teenage daughter (Zoe Mikulecszy), whose birthday is ostensibly the occasion for the gathering.
Arriving to help celebrate and talk to the rich man about succeeding him as head of the firm is a slick executive and his London gallery-owning girlfriend (Antonia Beamish).
It's the latter who won't look the other way, like the others are expected to do, when it's revealed that the birthday girl has an incestuous relationship with the father. The son, who has known about it for some time, is clearly on the verge of a breakdown over the actions and attitudes of the unapologetic parent.
The sun goes down, and the close quarters force matters to a sad, unexpected conclusion. The three men are played by Siegried Terpoorteh, Philipp Stengele and Jurgen Brugger. Cinematographer Felix von Muralt and Signorell find ways to keep the talky picture interesting visually, while the performances are uniformly believable.
ENGEL & JOE
A competition entry from Germany inspired by an article in Stern by Kai Hermann ("Christiane F"), director Vanessa Jopp's second film after "Forget America" is a frenetic journey into the lives of street kids, who hang out most of the time in front of a cathedral in Cologne. Joe (Jana Pallaske) is a fairly grounded teen who runs away from home with her dog and takes up with Engel (Robert Stadlober), a punk with a romantic streak.
After experiencing the highs and lows of life on the streets for a while, including the accidental death of a drug addict, Joe's getting pregnant causes them to think seriously about the future. With overt biblical references, the story has them planning to someday escape the city for the mountains with their baby, Moses.
But Engel's unfitness for work and penchant for hard drugs almost drive Joe into the safe haven of another, more sensible young man.
Pallaske and Stadlober deliver intense performances, but Jopp's direction is mostly over-the-top in trying to capture the volcanic emotional state of the characters.
Seemingly every exchange of dialogue has 100 cuts, and the hand-held camerawork flings the viewer around as much as a movie can, but it makes for an experience to which filmgoers older than the characters might it find hard to relate.
LEO AND CLAIRE
German director Joseph Vilsmaier ("Brother of Sleep", "Marlene") weighs in with this competition entry based on a true story about a married, well-known Jewish businessman in Nuremberg who has a fling -- but not a serious affair -- with a pretty young photographer who is not a Jew.
During the mid-1930s, this becomes a recipe for calamity as the jealous, prejudiced neighbors never forget what they think they've witnessed in the courtyard of apartments where the lead resides. Vilsmaier is the credited cinematographer and co-wrote with Klaus Richter the well-crafted screenplay based on a book by Christiane Kohl.
Played by Michael Degen, Leo is married to Claire (Suzanne von Borsody), while the sexy ingenue is Irene (Franziska Petri).
Nicely paced, lushly produced and climaxing with the horrible 1941 sham trial that accuses Leo and Irene of criminal wrongdoing, Vilsmaier's film is not very shocking given the many previous features and documentaries about the era. But it still has an emotional punch that will leave few viewers unmoved.
David Hunter...
Five people on a yacht in the waters off Zurich drink, smoke and make merry until disturbing, mood-shifting secrets are revealed in this intriguing Swiss production, the second feature by director Riccardo Signorell ("Eden"). Not a moment too long at 81 minutes and coming to an abrupt but satisfying end, "Scheherazade" centers on a successful businessman and his relationships with an artistic-minded son and beautiful teenage daughter (Zoe Mikulecszy), whose birthday is ostensibly the occasion for the gathering.
Arriving to help celebrate and talk to the rich man about succeeding him as head of the firm is a slick executive and his London gallery-owning girlfriend (Antonia Beamish).
It's the latter who won't look the other way, like the others are expected to do, when it's revealed that the birthday girl has an incestuous relationship with the father. The son, who has known about it for some time, is clearly on the verge of a breakdown over the actions and attitudes of the unapologetic parent.
The sun goes down, and the close quarters force matters to a sad, unexpected conclusion. The three men are played by Siegried Terpoorteh, Philipp Stengele and Jurgen Brugger. Cinematographer Felix von Muralt and Signorell find ways to keep the talky picture interesting visually, while the performances are uniformly believable.
ENGEL & JOE
A competition entry from Germany inspired by an article in Stern by Kai Hermann ("Christiane F"), director Vanessa Jopp's second film after "Forget America" is a frenetic journey into the lives of street kids, who hang out most of the time in front of a cathedral in Cologne. Joe (Jana Pallaske) is a fairly grounded teen who runs away from home with her dog and takes up with Engel (Robert Stadlober), a punk with a romantic streak.
After experiencing the highs and lows of life on the streets for a while, including the accidental death of a drug addict, Joe's getting pregnant causes them to think seriously about the future. With overt biblical references, the story has them planning to someday escape the city for the mountains with their baby, Moses.
But Engel's unfitness for work and penchant for hard drugs almost drive Joe into the safe haven of another, more sensible young man.
Pallaske and Stadlober deliver intense performances, but Jopp's direction is mostly over-the-top in trying to capture the volcanic emotional state of the characters.
Seemingly every exchange of dialogue has 100 cuts, and the hand-held camerawork flings the viewer around as much as a movie can, but it makes for an experience to which filmgoers older than the characters might it find hard to relate.
LEO AND CLAIRE
German director Joseph Vilsmaier ("Brother of Sleep", "Marlene") weighs in with this competition entry based on a true story about a married, well-known Jewish businessman in Nuremberg who has a fling -- but not a serious affair -- with a pretty young photographer who is not a Jew.
During the mid-1930s, this becomes a recipe for calamity as the jealous, prejudiced neighbors never forget what they think they've witnessed in the courtyard of apartments where the lead resides. Vilsmaier is the credited cinematographer and co-wrote with Klaus Richter the well-crafted screenplay based on a book by Christiane Kohl.
Played by Michael Degen, Leo is married to Claire (Suzanne von Borsody), while the sexy ingenue is Irene (Franziska Petri).
Nicely paced, lushly produced and climaxing with the horrible 1941 sham trial that accuses Leo and Irene of criminal wrongdoing, Vilsmaier's film is not very shocking given the many previous features and documentaries about the era. But it still has an emotional punch that will leave few viewers unmoved.
David Hunter...
- 8/31/2001
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IN JULY
The well-liked opening film of the festival and a top 10 hit in Germany when it opened in late August, writer-director Fatih Akin's "In July", his second feature, is a fairly traditional romance in the guise of an offbeat road movie.
Moritz Bleibtreu of "Run Lola Run" plays tall, handsome and lovestruck Daniel. Unfortunately for the equally attractive and romantically inclined Juli, which is German for July and the month in which the story takes place, Daniel is not on a quest to win her heart.
The story begins in Hamburg, Germany, and features misadventures in Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria. Physics professor Daniel tries to reach Istanbul, Turkey, for a rendezvous with a beautiful girl he's only seen once or twice. He picks up carefree Juli, played by Christiane Paul, as a traveling companion. The pair met earlier on the sidewalk, when he bought a ring from her. She has chosen him for his manly awkwardness and big heart. He's doesn't pay attention to her, but he can't get along without her.
Unpredictable in a few places and always watchable because of the charismatic duo of Bleibtreu and Paul, "In July" has a terrific soundtrack and a few magical cinematic moments that define true love and prove more effective than the usual mainstream approach.
THE STATE I AM IN
A strong role for up-and-coming actress Julia Hummer (who has a small but memorable part in "Gigantic"), "The State I Am In" is a tense coming-of-age drama about the rebellious daughter of rebellious parents.
Clara (Barbara Auer) and Hans (Richy Muller) are always saying that things will get better. With teenage daughter Jeanne (Hummer), they are hiding out on the coast of Portugal, waiting to move to Sao Paulo, Brazil, and assume new identities.
Although it's never clearly established what past crimes they are guilty of, Jeanne's mom and dad set out to rob a bank in Germany. While Jeanne is a knowing part of their plan, she increasingly resists their attempts to stop her from having a boyfriend. A surfer she meets on the beach, Heinrich (Bilge Bingul), says he's just a "McJobber who loves Brian Wilson," but Jeanne falls in love as best she can. Believably complicated and unable to escape participation in the bloody finale, she is scarred but still standing at the end of director Christian Petzold's tightly wound fourth feature.
FORGET AMERICA
Set mostly in the German town of Aschersleben, this semicomical romantic triangle finds David Marek Harloff) and Benno (Roman Knizka), two best friends who are stuck in a rut, both falling for Anna (Franziska Petri), a would-be actress from nearby Halle. The first solo feature from Munich-based director Vanessa Jopp, "Forget America" is fairly tame but involving. The screenplay by Maggie Peren certainly gives plenty of frustrating moments to lead character David, a photographer who initially lets Benno get the upper hand and spends the rest of the movie regretting it.
The three actors are engagingly attuned to the young and moderately reckless milieu, which includes Benno's business selling vintage American cars and David's dingy life at home with a skinhead younger brother and disabled father. Anna comes in and out of their lives, spending most of her energy on violently emotional Benno while giving David discouraging signals over his obvious infatuation with her. All three unexpectedly underachieve in their dream careers. In the resulting tension, Benno starts to self-destruct, causing Anna to drift toward David.
GIGANTIC
Co-produced by Tom Tykwer ("Run Lola Run") and directed by one of the actors in that film, Sebastian Schipper, "Gigantic" is an X Filme Creative Pool production that bowed stateside at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. A bit loopy in the storytelling department -- a lot of comedy, adventure and drama is packed into the film's one long night -- "Gigantic" is satisfying enough to interest festival audiences. The character-driven piece follows three male friends in Hamburg, Germany. One of the friends is leaving for faraway places and probably is never coming back.
Walter (Antoine Monot Jr.) owns a big muscle car that transports him and pals Ricco (Florian Lukas) and Floyd (Frank Giering) on a round of adventuring that includes several run-ins with a troupe of angry, Elvis-themed circus performers. Ricco is the noisy daredevil of the group, but reliable Walter and gloomy Floyd -- the one leaving -- are not ones to walk away from a challenge.
They get their wish to experience "gigantic" things when a high-stakes Foosball game with a formidable opponent named Snake goes their way. The game is a lengthy, imaginatively executed sequence. The melancholy sentiments of the night climax when their underage, party-girl companion Telsa (Julia Hummer) almost dies from alcohol poisoning.
David Hunter...
The well-liked opening film of the festival and a top 10 hit in Germany when it opened in late August, writer-director Fatih Akin's "In July", his second feature, is a fairly traditional romance in the guise of an offbeat road movie.
Moritz Bleibtreu of "Run Lola Run" plays tall, handsome and lovestruck Daniel. Unfortunately for the equally attractive and romantically inclined Juli, which is German for July and the month in which the story takes place, Daniel is not on a quest to win her heart.
The story begins in Hamburg, Germany, and features misadventures in Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria. Physics professor Daniel tries to reach Istanbul, Turkey, for a rendezvous with a beautiful girl he's only seen once or twice. He picks up carefree Juli, played by Christiane Paul, as a traveling companion. The pair met earlier on the sidewalk, when he bought a ring from her. She has chosen him for his manly awkwardness and big heart. He's doesn't pay attention to her, but he can't get along without her.
Unpredictable in a few places and always watchable because of the charismatic duo of Bleibtreu and Paul, "In July" has a terrific soundtrack and a few magical cinematic moments that define true love and prove more effective than the usual mainstream approach.
THE STATE I AM IN
A strong role for up-and-coming actress Julia Hummer (who has a small but memorable part in "Gigantic"), "The State I Am In" is a tense coming-of-age drama about the rebellious daughter of rebellious parents.
Clara (Barbara Auer) and Hans (Richy Muller) are always saying that things will get better. With teenage daughter Jeanne (Hummer), they are hiding out on the coast of Portugal, waiting to move to Sao Paulo, Brazil, and assume new identities.
Although it's never clearly established what past crimes they are guilty of, Jeanne's mom and dad set out to rob a bank in Germany. While Jeanne is a knowing part of their plan, she increasingly resists their attempts to stop her from having a boyfriend. A surfer she meets on the beach, Heinrich (Bilge Bingul), says he's just a "McJobber who loves Brian Wilson," but Jeanne falls in love as best she can. Believably complicated and unable to escape participation in the bloody finale, she is scarred but still standing at the end of director Christian Petzold's tightly wound fourth feature.
FORGET AMERICA
Set mostly in the German town of Aschersleben, this semicomical romantic triangle finds David Marek Harloff) and Benno (Roman Knizka), two best friends who are stuck in a rut, both falling for Anna (Franziska Petri), a would-be actress from nearby Halle. The first solo feature from Munich-based director Vanessa Jopp, "Forget America" is fairly tame but involving. The screenplay by Maggie Peren certainly gives plenty of frustrating moments to lead character David, a photographer who initially lets Benno get the upper hand and spends the rest of the movie regretting it.
The three actors are engagingly attuned to the young and moderately reckless milieu, which includes Benno's business selling vintage American cars and David's dingy life at home with a skinhead younger brother and disabled father. Anna comes in and out of their lives, spending most of her energy on violently emotional Benno while giving David discouraging signals over his obvious infatuation with her. All three unexpectedly underachieve in their dream careers. In the resulting tension, Benno starts to self-destruct, causing Anna to drift toward David.
GIGANTIC
Co-produced by Tom Tykwer ("Run Lola Run") and directed by one of the actors in that film, Sebastian Schipper, "Gigantic" is an X Filme Creative Pool production that bowed stateside at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. A bit loopy in the storytelling department -- a lot of comedy, adventure and drama is packed into the film's one long night -- "Gigantic" is satisfying enough to interest festival audiences. The character-driven piece follows three male friends in Hamburg, Germany. One of the friends is leaving for faraway places and probably is never coming back.
Walter (Antoine Monot Jr.) owns a big muscle car that transports him and pals Ricco (Florian Lukas) and Floyd (Frank Giering) on a round of adventuring that includes several run-ins with a troupe of angry, Elvis-themed circus performers. Ricco is the noisy daredevil of the group, but reliable Walter and gloomy Floyd -- the one leaving -- are not ones to walk away from a challenge.
They get their wish to experience "gigantic" things when a high-stakes Foosball game with a formidable opponent named Snake goes their way. The game is a lengthy, imaginatively executed sequence. The melancholy sentiments of the night climax when their underage, party-girl companion Telsa (Julia Hummer) almost dies from alcohol poisoning.
David Hunter...
- 11/20/2000
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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