Paparazzo

Two paparazzi want to take pictures of a famous and mysterious movie star and are about to disclose a big secret (no spoilers here).

It's an absolute miracle why the original directors (Connie Walther/Stephan Wagner) refused to "sign" this movie with his name. It might be that parts of the story are a little incoherent and the editing might be a bit rude. But the plot itself, the actors, the soundtrack, the locations (Cannes, New York, Palma de Mallorca) and therefore the movie's ATMOSPHERE as a whole are simply fantastic and captivated me right from the start.

If you like suspenseful movies and appreciate "fresh faces" (i.e. David Rott and - wow! - Agata Buzek) and want to see a story that goes a lot deeper than most TV movies (180 min!), you might be positively surprised with this one.

Some reviewers have written it off as "polished trash", while others said it went deeper than most movies, especially made-for-TV movies. The truth is "Paparazzo" is best seen with the sound on mute: the Côte D'Azur never ceases to delight, and first daughter come B-list actress Agata Buzek isn't too hard to look at either. But listening to three hours of idle chatter about a fabricated conspiracy will definitely be too much for most viewers, especially given the mediocre performance of pretty much the entire cast and the gaping plot holes in Matthias Seelig's script. What's behind Georg's obsession with the reclusive actress? Who is the unseen puppeteer of the Cannes delusion? What is Castelli's stake in all this? The lengthy resolution, set in New York for no particular reason, is as predictable as it is tiresome. A little less instant drama and a few more laughs would have done this film a world of good.