Der Vorname

I found this movie on DVD at my public library.

As a foreign movie is should be a good fit for me. I studied 2+ years of German in college, including German literature. This is a German movie, in German, with English subtitles. I could understand much of the dialog.

It is a straightforward premise - a progressive young man and his girlfriend are going to have a baby boy and at a family gathering everyone wants to know what the baby's name will be. They try to guess and even when told it starts with 'A' no one guesses 'Adolf'. Of course when that becomes known everyone else is upset, it is too close a reminder of the infamous Adolf Hitler.

I would guess, from reading a few reviews, that Germans and perhaps Europeans in general find this to be a really good, entertaining movie. But I don't, it is a lot of talking about a political subject and this is just not the kind of movie I enjoy.

This film managed to find the fine balance between social critique, a theme that German society is almost obsessed with, and humor. It gives the audience the sense of a theatrical drama, as most of the movie is shot between the living room and dinner table, albeit with varying camera angles, which is a challenge by itself as the audience can easily get bored if the conversation is not engaging enough, which is not the case with this film. You can have a good time without being interested in the underlying political discussion, although you would probably enjoy it more if you are interested in the reflection of German intelligentsia on the modern day impact of Nazi Germany's legacy on its society. The script is well-thought out, genuinely funny, and demonstrates that German cinema has the artistic skill to produce a high quality comedy. I highly recommend it.

Really enjoyed it. It has a brilliant menu of fun for a perfect movienight you won't forget!!

Never thought about to use this headline for a review but it fits absolutely perfect to the plot. And yeah, this was one of the funniest german movies i've ever seen so far.

Think about a usual family dinner with friends, cozy small talk, good dinner and some glasses of whine in relaxed atmosphere. At some point one couple offers the name of their unborn child and it's "ADOLF". Now everybody in the room is triggered, exactly like you. You can feel the moment, when the whole mood in the room is going to a complete different direction. Everything's getting a bit more aggressive but also funnier with every minute.

But no worries, this is not the complete plot, it was only the warm-up. Be prepared and listen carefully. This kind of comedy is all about the dialogues and i loved it.

Enjoy!

Cheers, Fletcher

German "How About Adolf?" (original title: "Der Vorname", 2018) is the latest remake (in my count))) of the Italian "An Italian Name" (original title: "Il nome del figlio", 2015) which in turn is the remake of the French "What's in a Name?" (original title: "Le prénom", 2012), but I think the German is better (more mature)) than other two. Well done!