La Princesa Y El Guerrero

For me, a brilliant movie. There is so much of it, and any holes were not apparent at first viewing. But if it is not universally acclaimed, no-one is at fault. There's much magic in the hands of this director-writer. The casting is perfect; original in looks and body language, Furmann and Potente grace a modern fairy tale that says, well, something about fate, leaving the past behind, finding what you want right under your nose etc. All the old true clichés. This time, told with exquisite pace (slow), and beauty. A couple of shatteringly good scenes, well thought out, plotted and executed, all rounded out with a black humour and tender touch that keeps it CLEAR of pretension. The ending leaves a poignant, puzzled smile and an appetite for more German cinema. If you don't like this you must be a Van Damme fan.

This is a modern fairy tale, treat and appreciate it as so. The characters are bold, and their actions are representative of who they are than what actual people do. I say this because I noticed every negative review of this film was caught up in looking for realism- there isn't any. The setting may be proposed as so but the method through which the story is told unfolds like a performance piece.

This film is brilliant- stark personalities, dynamic relationships, and a mix of modern, classical, and fanciful direction. The allegorical context is brilliant when mulled over. I would compare it to `Last Tango in Paris'.

There´s Bodo. There´s Sissy. They don´t know each other. A accident happens. Bodo rescues Sissy´s life. Then he disappears. She tries to find him. Will they have a chance?

Sometimes it´s hard to find words to describe a movie. It´s an unusual love story, a melodramatic thriller, that is sometimes disturbing, too - especially the scenes in the psychiatry, where Sissy works as a nurse - and with hypnotizing music (which sometimes reminds you of "Lola rennt" and "Winterschläfer"). Director Tom Tykwer shows again that he can tell stories with heart and soul. There are characters you really care for. Especially Benno Fürmanns performance touched me deeply. I could really feel the pain he´s going trough. And of course Franka Potente. I was on her side when she was desperately fighting for Bodo´s love.

Probably the best german film this year, I can highly recommend it. Watch and FEEL it!!!

Only a fool would expect this to be a second Run Lola Run. But unfortunately, there will be a lot of fools out there: This won't be the hit that Tykwer's former film was. And, just to say that: Run Lola Run still plays in a higher league.

But that's, of course, not to say that The Princess And The Warrior is a bad movie. Quite the contrary: there should be more films like this one. It's slow at times, yes, but to the ones with keen eyes it's meditative. It's metaphysical, in the end even surreal, it's down-to-earth, but at the same time very outlandish, it's a love story, but without the usual assets: there's no kissing, let alone sex; yes, even holding hands just occurs for a second. It's about a spiritual love, something epic, as the title suggests.

Many people won't like it; far too few people will love it. And I'm somewhere in between: It's a bold movie to make, especially in the dull (to be polite) movie scene of Germany, and a good one, too. Something refreshingly different (and wonderfully written, directed, shot and acted, I might add...). But somehow, you can't help feeling just a little disappointed after the milestone of modern film making that Tom Tykwer released two years ago.

8 out of 10.

This film was playing in our little theater here, as part of the Beyond Normal Films promotion about a year & a half ago. I must say that before then, I had never heard of Tom Tykwer.

Since then, he has become 1 of my favorite writers & directors. I immediately went out & got the highly acclaimed *Lola rennt* & I must say that I was very impressed. I also got to check out his most recent film *Heaven* as part of this year's Beyond Normal ticket; I LOVED it.

If you are not familiar with Tykwer's work, I would suggest you start with *Der Krieger.* The story has several elements that almost everyone will enjoy & although the story may be a little slow in a few parts, it is nonetheless, interesting. It is not really a film for kids though.

I was once a little intimidated by films in a language I could not understand (German, for instance). There were several times that I did not even have to read the subtitles to know what was going on, it was great & even a little inspiring to me for wanting to learn some German (Danke schön, Tom). I encourage you all to check this flick out if you have not yet.

My rating: 8/10