Solo for Clarinet (1998) User Reviews

dark and well-acted

[Miles-10 · 7/10 · 14 June 2000]

Although my German is sub-standard, I enjoyed this story of an angst-ridden cop. (I understood the significance of the clarinet, but I missed what became of it. Was the evidence lost? If so, did Kominka really want it to be found or did he have mixed feelings about it?) The acting is obviously good, thus making the romance between the detective and his suspect compellingly edgy. There is a wonderful scene in which Kominka (Gotz George) follows his suspect (Corinna Harfouch) to a singles event and finally meets her. Inevitably, she asks him what he does for a living. Because he cannot tell her that he is a homicide investigator, he becomes delightfully evasive. Kominka is distinctly not a kind man. (We see him hire and then beat up a prostitute.) But George brilliantly inhabits this character who is plagued by a failed marriage and assorted demons, and yet is able to fall in love, albeit with a forbidden object. The movie is also graced by dark images of Berlin which are nonetheless appealing to those who have enjoyed that city.

Ein Schwartzkinospielfilm Deutshes

[hammy-3 · 7/10 · 14 October 1999]

It's a bit ironic that we use to term film Noir in the English-speaking world as the genres roots are more German than French. This is a classic example of the genre worthy of Lang or Pabst, with an angst-ridden German cop investigating a pedophilia-related murder and finding out more about himself than the crime in question. It's got a dark, Brooding quality that you only find in Northern European movies, some scenes of incredible brutality, but it's not totally lacking in faith in human nature. It was also a German who said that those who confront monsters are in danger of becoming monsters themselves (or something like that) and thats as apposite a line to describe this film as any.

Intense performances worth the watch.

[insomniac_rod · 26 October 2004]

I had the chance to watch this movie on late night cable and I quickly got attached to it. The intense dramatic performances are the best about this German film. The acting is way better than expected and it totally matches with the powerful scenes.

Good cinematography for crude , disturbing images. Berlin looks dark and mysterious.

Worths a watch. 6/10.

brave performances

[skip-25 · 10/10 · 12 May 1999]

Both the male & the female lead in this movie gave brave, nuanced performances.

Scary resemblance to Hamlet

[wombat_1 · 19 November 2002]

Everytime Kaminka was on his own during this movie, I kept expecting a soliloquy, either out loud or maybe just in his head. The same self-torture, the same agonising over the "right thing" to do. All of those previous commentators who criticised Kaminka for his actions: well, have you ever been in such a situation yourself, and did you handle it any better?

I also take to task the previous commentator who said that Kaminka was "bad" because he beat up the prostitute. Whilst not condoning violence against women in any way, I think that he merely lashed out in helpless rage. Remember that he was immediately filled with huge remorse; and that he offered her the entire contents of his wallet afterwards. And going back to the previous remark, remember Hamlet's "now I could kill him". Does that make Hamlet "bad", too? Maybe it does....

And with great respect to the previous commentator who asked "what happened to the clarinet?", I think that he has missed the point. Once Kaminka discovered who the murderer was, and what he was going to do about it (not saying - don't won't to get blacklisted for putting in an unwarned spoiler), then what happens to the clarinet is irrelevant.