As said in other reviews the film is watchable without knowing the book behind it also due to the performance of Jürgen Vogel.
However in Helmut Kraussers book "Fette Welt" Hagen is a deeply pessimistic, cynical but yet intelligent and highly sophisticated character. Despite all of his flaws. The film can't really express these complexity not to mention the complicated connection between Judith and the protagonist, his dark childhood or, without spoiling, the revelation of Herodes at the end.
Furthermore it isn't able to transform the sober poetics and slightly philosophical passages of the book into picture or to deliver the special aesthetics towards dirt and decay described sensitively in the text.
The question is, if this is possible at all. During a few scenes the movie at least tried.
However in Helmut Kraussers book "Fette Welt" Hagen is a deeply pessimistic, cynical but yet intelligent and highly sophisticated character. Despite all of his flaws. The film can't really express these complexity not to mention the complicated connection between Judith and the protagonist, his dark childhood or, without spoiling, the revelation of Herodes at the end.
Furthermore it isn't able to transform the sober poetics and slightly philosophical passages of the book into picture or to deliver the special aesthetics towards dirt and decay described sensitively in the text.
The question is, if this is possible at all. During a few scenes the movie at least tried.