Agnes and His Brothers (2004) User Reviews

Is dysfunction interesting?

[edchin2006 · 7/10 · 8 March 2008]

So many films are just "over the top" that it's refreshing to see one that has such a real "feel" to it.

I liked the cuts and transitions which interweave the lives of the brothers. The blending of three very different lives and personalities complete a fascinating portrait of a family. In a way it might have been "3 brothers and their father". (His character was not developed, but the three brothers' relationship to him made him a central figure.) That there is something dysfunctional within the film could be inferred from the title, but that does not imply anything interesting nor worthwhile in the film. Happily, it is interesting and fascinating.

I don't know if all dysfunctional families are interesting, but this one certainly is. Possibly, it is because the characters are so well developed that we can empathize with them. All in all - quite enjoyable.

3 films in 1, Bleibtreu the standout

[Horst_In_Translation · 6/10 · 8 December 2015]

"Agnes and His Brothers" is a German movie from over 10 years ago that runs for almost 2 hours and was written and directed by Oskar Roehler, still among Germany's most respected filmmakers these days. The lead actors in here are Martin Weiß, Moritz Bleibtreu and Herbert Knaup and the title is a reference to Weiß' transsexual character. I guess they really wanted to get this little joke in terms of "her"/"his" in here, even if the story does not warrant it. It's still mildly funny, so the title is not a complete failure. However, I have not measured it, but I am fairly certain that Agnes was the one from the trio that had less screen time than the other 2. And also in terms of memorability, Agnes is not the winner here. It certainly is Bleibtreu. He has been among Germany's most famous actors for a long time already, over 15 years I guess, and I have not always been too happy with his performances. Here, however, he is easily the best thing about this movie. His character was so well-written and he totally nails the part. It is actually pretty sad, but because of how accurate everything seems about him it even put a smile on my lips.

Apart from the lead trio, there are also a couple famous supporting actors in here, such as Tom Schilling, Martin Semmelrogge, Til Schweiger in a cameo etc. Katja Riemann won a German Film Award for her turn here, which truly baffles me as I saw nothing outstanding about her character or performance. Also included is Lee Daniels, the director from "precious" and "The Butler" and I really did not expect him in here the first time I saw this. So random. Today was the second time I watched this movie and I enjoyed it again. Real greatness is missing if we look past Bleibtreu's scenes and I did not really like the ending either, but as a whole it was still a good watch. Recommended and I wonder why Weiß stopped being in films a long time ago, while the 2 actors who play his character's brothers are still incredibly relevant today.

pretty in pictures

[becomesaloop · 6/10 · 23 April 2011]

hmm... so surely someone who has fully trangendered wouldn't still be sporting a 'five o'clock shadow' under their thin layer of foundation... and of course it is also the transgendered character in the film who must die at the end... (you go girl... just don't live past the last frame)... tiresome... but perhaps this equates more to a comment or a quip than a film review... it could have had so much more power and bite especially in fassbinders (possibly the original source material for this film?) hands... a handsome cast of good actors in what felt like surface flash/titillation... and just enough 'get your freak on' quirks and a pastel/pop colour schematic tacked onto a copycat almodovar wanna be sensibility... ughh!

Nonsense on parade

[Thom-Peters · 2/10 · 21 June 2010]

This movie is rife with weathered stereotypes, spiced with a few somewhat original, but inane ideas that are supposed to "shock" and impress the viewer. It is pure pulp. Not of the good, but of the embarrassing variety, pretending to be art disguised as pulp. It's not a highly "symbolic", merciless comment on the state of today's Germany, it's just nonsense on parade: Agnes was a guy who had his sex changed, because he thought his gay friend would like that. Turned out, he didn't. Too bad for Agnes. Sometimes it's a good idea to surprise your loved ones, sometimes it's really not. Oskar Roehler got this sad story from the arguably trashiest of all Fassbinder movies: "In einem Jahr mit 13 Monden". For Fassbinder it was the basis of one of his awkward melodramas, for Roehler it's just a queer gimmick. Actually, Agnes is by far the happiest and most self-assured of the three brothers in this movie, which therefore concentrates on the other two, Werner and Hans-Jörg.

Werner is a "Green Party" politician, working for the German environment ministry. His proudest achievement: He can produce his own biological fertilizer. His wife hates him, because she has to watch him doing so - every single day. During an especially inane "shocking" scene he feels the need to produce something valuable while he's having an intense discussion with the leader of his party on the phone. He pulls down his pants and takes a dump on a single sheet of paper. Later on he picks up this sheet and carries his - obviously highly concentrated - biological fertilizer away.

Hans-Jörg works as a librarian, at a really big, modern library, with lots of hot chicks, studying. When he sees a hot woman walking towards the ladies room, he follows her. His 6th sense tells him that there will no one in the first room, with the washing basins, that she will take the booth next to the one he's prepared with a small peeping hole, that she is going to have a tough fight with her constipated bowels, featuring lots of heavy breathing. And he's got another kinky superpower - no one can hear him masturbating.

This is an original idea, because quite obviously it would not work in real life - where a sad creep like Hans-Jörg would have used a spy camera. It's the brainchild of a hack writer who is writing by numbers: 1. aiming for an intellectual audience (library), 2. "underground" appeal (seedy sexuality/peeping Tom), 3. symbolic value (fecal matter).

Hans-Jörg is a sex addict, which in German movies never means that he's having sex all the time, but that he's always occupied with dysfunctional schemes to get some. He's in a self-help group, where everyone has got quite obviously exactly the same problem. That's where he gets recruited by a porn producer. The first day on his new job he meets his first new colleague and falls in love with her. He confesses that he's just shot his father, whom he blames to have abused "Agnes" as a child, thus turning him into a transsexual. The porn actress agrees to flee with him. They are heading towards Iraq, "to help the people down there".

Whoever takes this movie seriously, got a serious problem. Oskar Roehler takes his brainchild very seriously. This is not a comedy, nor a campy trash festival. It's just sad.

European feel-bad-movie at it's best

[t_atzmueller · 3/10 · 8 September 2011]

I was slightly surprised to see this rather mediocre German social-drama having reached the US video stores. Less surprising was that Moritz Bleibtreu was promoted as "star of 'Munich'" (which is true – he did have a 30 second appearance) and some critics witty line, "Freud filtered through Fassbinder". Ironically, the line is true: Fassbinder wasn't a particularly good or interesting director and Sigmund Freud's theories are rather outdated.

The story revolves around the Tschirner clan, what, consisting of neurotic transsexuals, sex-addicts and paedophiles, all hidden behind the facade of an average middle-class German family.

The dysfunctions within the family seem at all times beyond hope or redemption and none of the characters are remotely sympathetic, likable, even completely comprehensive (unless perhaps you're from a similar background, in which case you might not even want to watch this film in the first place). "Agnes and his brothers" simply isn't a pretty film nor is it a film that will leave you feeling better if you happen to watch it when you feel down. Most importantly: it doesn't tell us anything new.

What can be said about the acting? Well, the main focal points of the film being Martin Weiss as Agnes and Moritz Bleibreu as his sex-addict brother, neither performance comes across as completely convincing. Especially Bleibtreu, at the time hailed as the new hope of German cinema, seems stuck with a limited repertoire. Weiss on the other hand proves that he can convincingly wear a frock and woman's make-up – that doesn't make an actor but explains why this has remained his last appearance on the big screen (with the exception of the children's movie "Nick Knatterton").

Herbert Knaup, playing the oldest brother Werner and member of the Green Party, still has the best part in the movie – although the scene where he, in a grand-gesture, defecates on a piece of paper and ceremoniously carries his "product" away, seems to say more about this type of movie making than about his own schizophrenic behaviour.

As said, if you're looking for a film to drag you down or tell you time and again about the rotten times we leave and if you're looking for the most sanctimonious endings in recent European cinema, this may be for you.

didn't meet expectations

[br-19 · 3/10 · 12 January 2005]

No, I didn't like it. There were some good scenes, but most of the story based on bad taste and unnecessarily spotlighted human squalor. (Just think of the episode with the dog-lover -- was this supposed to be funny?) Some of the actors were great -- Katja Riemann for example, or Moritz Bleibtreu, who was cast way out of character, but rather convincing. Anyway, the story didn't do -- I'm not even sure there was one. Director Roehler seems to be too angry with the world, The Family, and himself to tell a straightforward story or to cast any light of warmth on his characters. I left the theatre quite irritated and disgusted, but nothing to last long -- a day later all is forgotten. (3/10)

The movie was over ambitious..

[ciaranh · 3/10 · 30 November 2004]

Having seen this film, I was left with the feeling that it betrayed its title. Although the acting was superb, the script or directing was lacking. This had to happen. Each of the three characters is the center of a separate story and each of these stories could have quite happily been a separate film. Agnes' story succeeds in being painful to watch, but I was lost because so little time given to Agnes' characterization. Agnes' fate begs the question: "Is there no happy ever after for Transexuals?" Of Course there is. But, it does not suit the tone of the film, which is a parody on middle class, liberal, left wing families.

I can't see this being a fair answer to American Beauty as that film was quite mystical in nature and the main character was very well introduced and described.

best German movie since decades!

[corinna-16 · 19 October 2004]

I was very touched. This may be because marriage fight is one of the main topics. It was great how characters that have an obvious "flaw" or "tick" fight for their happiness but struggle and fail so much at times. Problem was the actors are so well-known in Germany that I wasn't completely convinced. Like Moritz Bleibtreu is just too warm and kind for a guy like that. Some questions were not answered. Especially about the wife, why didn't she love him anymore, why did she use to love him? Even the filmmaker didn't know what the persons could have changed to make it easier. (Even the filmmaker let one person completely alone in the movie). I wasn't so touched by the Agnes, because I cannot relate to such a CALM person but I liked her and followed with mild(er) interest.

I liked it so much because it was REAL problems with an entertaining approach to present them.

it is not a matter of taste...

[cockaigne · 1/10 · 21 October 2004]

...but quality. This movie is short in every meaning. The story is not a story but the attempt to shock in times where even kids cannot be shocked by almost nothing anymore. What we see is a collection of different scenes some of them pretty good some awfully bad.

We follow three brothers (a politician, a sex maniac who feels inadequate and a sex changed) looking for happiness in their own tragedy of life and especially the tragedy in their interpersonal relationships. Reason for their being what they are is their dominating father who became - oh wonder - gay after he might have abused his sons in the past...

So far so good but beside the fact that the story is partly stolen, the writer and director did not decided if he wanted to make a comedy or a drama. What he definitely wanted to do is art, and that is by far not enough to make a good movie. Some critics called it a comic strip, some a satire and others called it a contemporary image of the German Republic. And there are the ones like me who just call it a big waste of time and money.

If you don't like Lynch, Fassbinder and Aldomovar just sent them a copy of the film so they can see how they have been imitated in a small minded way. I promise that they will suffer a lot.

At the end of the movie an ex porno-model and the still-sex-maniac agreed to drive from Germany into the Iraq (by car) and help the people over there... I am pretty sure that the movie meant exactly this, no ironic to be found in this scene.