"Schussangst" or "Gun-shy" is a German 100-minute movie from over a decade ago and probably the most known work by writer and director Dino Tsintadze. He adapted Dirk Kurbjuweit for the big screen here. The lead actor is Fabian Hinrichs and I have to say I am quite a fan of him. He has really good talent and proves this also in this movie here. i think the only reason why he is not more famous is that he falls exactly into the same niche like Daniel Brühl in terms of which characters suit him best, namely young men who are as sensitive as unstable. I do believe he is more talented than Brühl though, even if the general public may disagree. His female co-lead here is Lavinia Wilson and I thought she did her part well too as a young woman facing her very own demons, the toughest you can actually imagine in her own family.
These two are the heart and soul of the story. But the supporting actors are probably even more famous. Christoph Waltz shows up as a police detective before his international breakthrough with Tarantino. And Axel Prahl plays a man who likes to swim in the moonlight. And while I like both as actors, I must say I did not like the way they were included in the film. They appear so random and it is such a coincidence that they keep running into the protagonist that I seriously consider the idea that they only exist in his mind. It's not 100% clear.
The one thing I liked about this film the most is the ending. It is shocking yet extremely realistic at the very same time and that is quite an achievement. It fits perfectly to the main character that he cannot deal with rejection and that he would pursue his initial plan despite the target being dead. He sees himself as a victim now and hates the woman, the way he says her name when he sees her for the last time also makes this very much obvious. The final shot was absolutely outstanding. It makes complete sense in the way Hinrichs' character was written and in the way he was portrayed by the actor. He sees himself as being used by her when she felt bad, but now that her biggest problem is gone, she does not want anything more to do with him and also has fun with other guys as we see in the scene I previously mentioned. I also really liked that we don't see Hinrichs again in that final scene and that the credits roll in seconds after the shot. It is perfection. No need to bring back Waltz for the protagonist's arrest. The movie certainly could not have gone out on a higher note. I was almost tempted to give it a ****/***** because of that, but I refrained from it because some of the discrepancies from earlier in the movie, i.e. also those I have mentioned. But nonetheless as a whole it was a pretty good watch and you should definitely check it out.
These two are the heart and soul of the story. But the supporting actors are probably even more famous. Christoph Waltz shows up as a police detective before his international breakthrough with Tarantino. And Axel Prahl plays a man who likes to swim in the moonlight. And while I like both as actors, I must say I did not like the way they were included in the film. They appear so random and it is such a coincidence that they keep running into the protagonist that I seriously consider the idea that they only exist in his mind. It's not 100% clear.
The one thing I liked about this film the most is the ending. It is shocking yet extremely realistic at the very same time and that is quite an achievement. It fits perfectly to the main character that he cannot deal with rejection and that he would pursue his initial plan despite the target being dead. He sees himself as a victim now and hates the woman, the way he says her name when he sees her for the last time also makes this very much obvious. The final shot was absolutely outstanding. It makes complete sense in the way Hinrichs' character was written and in the way he was portrayed by the actor. He sees himself as being used by her when she felt bad, but now that her biggest problem is gone, she does not want anything more to do with him and also has fun with other guys as we see in the scene I previously mentioned. I also really liked that we don't see Hinrichs again in that final scene and that the credits roll in seconds after the shot. It is perfection. No need to bring back Waltz for the protagonist's arrest. The movie certainly could not have gone out on a higher note. I was almost tempted to give it a ****/***** because of that, but I refrained from it because some of the discrepancies from earlier in the movie, i.e. also those I have mentioned. But nonetheless as a whole it was a pretty good watch and you should definitely check it out.