reeba76 Reviews

Der Tanz mit dem Teufel - Die Entführung des Richard Oetker (2001 TV Movie)

Good mixture of atmosphere and suspense

[9/10 · 10 June 2007]

Kidnapped on the 14th of December 1976 and released after 21 millions of German mark was delivered as ransom money, Richard Oetker became one of Germany's most famous kidnappees. More than twenty years passed until the case could be completely closed.

This production for German TV, 'Der Tanz mit dem Teufel' (Dance with the devil), succeeds both in showing the mere events and giving an impression of the late 1970's when Germany was facing a series of kidnappings unknown so far, some related to the RAF. The movie is based on reports of officers in charge and on Oetker's memory, who still suffers from the after-effects of his captivity. Oetker's suffering is clearly depicted but never used to demand the audience's pity.

Sebastian Koch as Oetker, Tobias Moretti as Georg Kufbach and Christoph Waltz as Dieter Cilov - all on top of my list of German and Austrian actors - do a wonderful job. However, if you like to watch the movie in the German original version - in classes for example - subtitles are recommended, as the pronunciation is quite genuine: fast and slurred.

Think Fast, Mr. Moto (1937)

A charming series, thanks to Mr. Lorre

[7/10 · 28 November 2006]

*May contain minor spoilers*

I'd recommend the Mr Moto movies to anyone who likes a good low-budget adventure piece. The movies feature exotic places and folks, decent story lines, some action and - above all - good actors, Mr Peter Lorre in the lead. You might say, of course, that due to the time those movies were made in you find some clichés, but no more than in movies made later or even today. Since Mr Motos adventures mostly are set in the Middle East or East, stereotypes seem unavoidable. Yet the authors show some effort to present Chinese, Indian or Japanese figures as real figures, as far as the storyline allows it.

As a great fan of Mr Lorre I like his performance very much. He isn't allowed too much room for his talent, but plays his Kentaro Moto with elegance and a sort of gentle humor. Again, considering the time of production, it is nice to see how the small Japanese gentleman whom most people tend to completely underestimate, outsmarts blundering acquaintances and foes alike. I've been slightly disappointed to find out Mr Lorre didn't do the stunt scenes himself, but remembered he was supposed to be seriously ill for many years - so might have been while he played Mr Moto as well.

If you're looking for picturesque, old-time entertainment, a Mr Moto movie might be just the thing for you.

The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

Worth watching, but not extraordinary

[7/10 · 4 July 2006]

Some consider it a masterpiece, some just an example of experienced film-making. I'm sticking with the second opinion. I really do like The Shawshank Redemption, mainly because of its actors, but it remains a movie which pretends to tell a shocking story while using black-and-white schemes, unlikely characters (Andy Dufresne makes some saints look like amateurs) and incomplete character backgrounds. It is utterly unauthentic wherever you bother to question its settings or characters.

A better prison movie should at least give the audience an idea of what rape, the loss of freedom, the loss of contact to your family and friends, bad conditions and dullness can really do to a person.

I like the movie when it manages to show me how Brooks isn't able to adapt the outside world anymore. I find it mediocre when it tries to tell me the story of true friendship, strength and hope itself lying within a prison. I do not like it when it sells me men who manage to get through such hard times without developing any kind of trauma or negative characteristics.