Schramm

I think of Schramm like a train and you're tied to the tracks. Its a primitive film, full of aggression and violation. Buttgereit's film Nekromantik was snide and built up a cult, Schramm has more narrative than his film Der Todesking but its definitely not linear. Schramm retains the trademark cinematic dissociation Buttgereit does so well and which makes this film disturbing. Its the cheapness of the gore and the ordinariness of the surroundings which makes the dissociation possible. Odd to say, but there's a scary realism here in the blankness and bleakness. Its grosser than ever in Buttgereit land and this tale of a self-abusing, disturbed killer is compulsive viewing if you can

The first thing I would like to point out for all potential viewers is that this is not a gory film as much as it might be mildly disturbing. There are scenes of blood, but this doesn't necessarily constitute 'gore'. This is just my opinion, though.

Schramm is, as most already know, based on a lonely psycho with issues, many of which revolve around women and 'unrequited love' as someone else put it. While I understood the base and idea behind the film, I was left wanting.

Schramm managed to pique my interest but did little more. There is nothing here to flesh out the serial killer; just hints of his self-loathing and dementia. I would have liked some kind of inner monologue at points in the movie, to hear what the killer was thinking during and after his murders. Did he hate his body or did he just enjoy pain? Was he afraid of women or really just somewhat of a necrophiliac? Did he hate was he was doing, though he could not stop, or was he laughing maniacally on the inside? What exactly drives him? Many questions, few answers. Perhaps that was the point though, to leave one thinking and drawing their own conclusions. Maybe not.

In the end, I found this film did not live up to the hype. It wasn't necessarily bad, but it most certainly could have been better.

For those interested in 'gore', find something else. Schramm will not entertain you.

This has to be one of the best serial killer films if not for the camerawork or editing (much better than Buttgereits previous stuff) for its deadly realism. The special thing about this one is that it doesn't depict - instead it forces viewers to see from the killers eyes and think the killer's way.

Moreover, and mainly because of the obvious improval of the technic (it LOOKS much more professional than, say, Nekromantik, even if it's not, and I know because I watched the special edition where we see how they filmed this thing) , this film might appeal to other people as well, apart from sickos and people on weird / gore films.

I can imagine that some serious cinema-lovers could take this very seriously and consider it a great film as it is.

I must say that out of all the Jörg Buttgereit movies I have seen so far this is by far the best. It uses all of the same themes as his other movies (nudity, sex, mutilation, violence, killings, death) but it's more successful with it than usual, making this an artistic successful one, as well as an powerful one that is being effective with its themes.

The movie gives us a real look inside the head of a serial killer/rapist/necrophiliac. We see his weird fantasies of extreme violence and sex but we also see his fantasies of how he truly wants to be. The movie doesn't present its main character as a deranged psycho but more as a man who can't help being the way he is. He's struggling with it himself at points but in the end he just can't help being the man that he is. With self mutilation he tries to fight the feelings and punish himself for the deeds he has done but it's all in vein.

Yes, it's a quite odd movie, due to its themes and the way it's being brought to the screen. Jörg Buttgereit often picks the artistic approach and uses some symbolism and metaphors. For this movie he obviously got inspired by Luis Buñuel's work. Jörg Buttgereit is like the German Luis Buñuel and Takashi Miike, though not all of his movies work out as well as this one does.

It shows the world as a dirty place. Not only with it's extreme violence or people living in it but also with its almost depressing settings. The main characters apartment looks like it's an outdated '70's bachelor shack, in the middle of a bad and poor neighborhood.

It's a movie that works on so many levels with its themes and with the story it tries to tell. Jörg Buttgereit always aspires all of his movies to be like this but not all of his work works out as well and successful as this one does though.

9/10

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I actually sought this movie based on the great reviews from the other members of IMDB only to be sorely disappointed. A little more than an hour long, this comes of nothing more than a cheaply shot art house thriller. How is the viewer supposed to assume the main character is a 'serial killer' (known as The Lipstick Killer) - when we only see him murder 2 people throughout the entire movie? Labeling a movie as a film about a serial killer should at least (not to sound morbid) have more than 2 murders throughout the movie. Necrophilia? Were these viewers confusing this yawn fest with Nekromantic? Shocking scenes of murder? Where? The only 2 murders were less shocking than anything a Friday the 13th movie has shown a thousand times. The violence/gore is (minus one scene)very minimal, if any at all. - The direction itself almost seems as if its out to confuse the viewer. Save your time and money - If you're seeking a violent movie about a serial killer that delivers, search for "The Untold Story" with Anthony Wong.