Barfuss

This is the best German film I have ever seen. The film is very easy to watch. It's not a torture like some others. The woman in the leading role is lovely and has such a charming smile. I would recommend this film to all who seek love for those who have already found it and for those who see no meaning in it. Because this film shows that even if you are love's biggest enemy Love will still find you and strike you and then you will be powerless to fight Her. It is an unusual love story which looks more like an adventure. This film will teach you how to buy a ticket in the bus, how to 'get cash' and how to do shopping. Even if you know already see the film and find out why do people say Faith know its job!

Til's movie is definitely sweet, entertaining and down-right funny. It is as German as I've seem a movie, and it's humour is much more subtle and slowly delivered than most of what Holiwood has to offer. The amber colour of the cinematography gives it both a timelessness and a romantic touch. We see Germany as it is, and a most unlikely love story taking place before our eyes.

A movie about how absurd can a moment in life be, how sometimes we all need to have a bit of craziness and foolishness in order to make it through the madness of normal life.

Not a classic, but a good enjoyable evening.

Having seen "Barfuß" today with a friend of mine, I have to say that in many ways it is better than I expected it to be.

Til Schweiger gives a remarkably good performance and obviously his ability in directing has improved since his last major effort "Der Eisbär". Johanna Wokalek is THE reason to see the film, though, and fortunately Schweiger knows this pulls himself back and gives her the ability to shine. Her performance of Leila is sweet and touching and she manages to provide the movie with a light touch as well as a necessary seriousness.

From the get-go it is clear that this movie is not supposed to be a real drama but rather a tender and poetic fairy-tale. It was important to stage it that way, because if the film had focused too much of the realistic aspect (Leila's handicap and Nick's downfall from his family background) it would easily have failed. This way, it walks a very fine line between comedy and drama quite well.

However, I have some major quibbles with the finished product. First, I think the movie cannot really make up its mind, which genre it wants to belong to, usually I like genre-bastards but this movie pretends to be a road movie for so long, that once it gets done with the road movie one wonders when the movie will finally be over.

Also, there is one moment in the story, when the movie steps over the above mentioned fine line between comedy and drama too much. I won't mention details but when the protagonists finally reach the wedding of Nick's brother, which is supposedly the end of their trip together, they both humiliate themselves at the party very much. I admit that I get uncomfortable easily when characters I like humiliate themselves, but to me this part was pretty hard to take, as I just wished for Leila and Nick to get out of there as quickly as possible, knowing they would not be able to leave just like that. (on the plus side, I guess it shows, that Scheiger is capable of making us feel for the characters, though).

Schweiger has mentioned often, that this movie has been really dear to his heart from the beginning and watching the film one can see this clearly. I believe he also wanted this to be a film that he made with a lot of friends and people he admired. Thus many German movie and TV stars such as Jürgen Vogel, Michael Gwisdek, Armin Rohde, Markus Maria Profitlich, et al. appear in cameos. While I usually enjoy a little game of "spot the celebrity", in this particular rather sweet and touching story it seemed out of place and became quite annoying to me after a while to see all kinds of stars (what was Axel Stein doing there, by the way?) having one funny moment to share.

Oh, and one last criticism: After "Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei" ("The Edukators") this is the second German movie in a short while to use Leonard Cohen's "Halleluyah" in its soundtrack. While I really love the song, to me in movie history it will always be connected with "Shrek". So PLEASE you German filmmakers everywhere: come up with something new or original if you want to illustrate a bittersweet moment. It really tears the viewer out of the context and seems like a cheap rip-off.

These points aside, "Barfuß" is a very fine movie, beautiful to look at, moving and with wonderful actors in it.

as the German cant make good movies,I have to say that this film may give you a shock.From the beginning till the end I was really connected and wondering what was going to happen.The scenes are good connected to each other and of course the playact is perfect.Another world that a woman lives and a man who can adapt himself to her and the love they have made me really thing of what we are looking.People search for people who has perfect job,perfect body,perfect outfit etc but don't we look for feelings anymore.Thats the film you have to watch and criticize yourselves.

have a nice watch and watch it with your girlfriends ;)

I didn't have so much fun watching a love comedy for a long time (maybe after "When Harry met Sally") as this film has it all: very interesting plot, excellent and funny dialogs and scenes, top-notch acting and... this "something", this thing that makes it a film you want to watch several times and you're never bored with.

Til Schweiger is at his best (OK, I am a Til Schweiger fan, but in this one he's just awesome), Johanna Wokalek is sooo charming that it's just a pleasure to watch her.

I'm normally not writing just positives about a movie... but this one has simply bought me - I've enjoyed it so much that I can't find anything that distracted me from one of the best movie experiences ever.

If you live outside of Germany (like I do), either on your visit to this country get yourself a ticket in a movie theater (like I did), or just wait for it on DVD. This one's worth it.