Stromberg is, finally, great comedy from Germany, based on the super-successful British sitcom The Office. Unlike in other countries, it was never officially licensed, the production company BrainPool did their own thing based on the strong performance of actor Christoph Maria Herbst. After several very successful seasons, both with the critics and -- more importantly -- the audience they came out with a feature-length movie which transports the humor well to the much longer format. Although the concept ultimately does work better as a sitcom, Stromberg The Movie provides you with an ultimately satisfying dose of mundane office anarchy. I particularly enjoyed the reaction from the cinema audience which lapped up the harebrained, deliciously politically incorrect philosophy of Bernd Stromberg and his office guerilla. The movie feels like an extended version of the TV sitcom until the end, when Stromberg accidentally rebels against the drudgery of the allmighty Capitol Versicherung and becomes a modern-day Che Guevara. In the end, he comes out on top, although probably not for long. The system will take over and win. We are left to console us with the thought that everyone, even a Bernd Stromberg, can have his or her day.
