L'engrenage

Why this movie was a failure at the German box-office will always be a mystery to me. Fatih Akin, the director, was obviously influenced by Martin Scorsese's and Brian DePalma's first movies but he didn't try to imitate them. Instead he made one of the first movies which truly celebrates the 'Multikulti'-society that Germany has become (At least in the larger cities).

You can't help but like the Turkish, Serbian and Greek protagonists albeit they are criminals. The characters are far too alive and three-dimensional to be seen as stereotypes/cliches thrown in to reinforce prejudices.

To me, KURZ UND SCHMERZLOS was the best German movie of 1998 (Even better than LOLA RENNT) and I recommend it to anyone who likes MEAN STREETS, Matthieu Kassovitz' LA HAINE or the films of Lars Becker. 9 out of 10.

I found it by chance in my library. I nearly forgot it, since the time I taped it off from French ARTE channel. Yes, you can compare it with a Marty Scorcese - MEAN STREETS - like tale. Petty hoodlums in Germany, mostly from immigrant descent: Turkish, Serbian, most of them brutal, violent volks. It is not in the Quentin Tarantino style either, it refuses to copy the new fashion of this period, trying to imitate Tarantino's way of story telling or filming at all costs. It sounds very realistic, the acting more real than life. It grabs your attention and the characters, despite what they are, remain poignant, gripping. Excellent social crime film.

Kurz Und Schmerzloz (or Short, Sharp Shock for the English title) from the Turkish writer/director Fatih Akin is a German drama that takes place in Altona, a well known neighbourhood of Hamburg, the westernmost urban borough to be more precise. I've been there several times so I recognized some places which is always enjoyable. The story was also recognizable at times, reminded me my youth years when friendship was the most important thing in the world. It's an interesting drama, easy to follow, and well acted. All foreign and unknown actors to me but they were all very convincing. It's not a high budget movie but it's well made, which proves that you don't always have to have a high budget to make a good movie.

It is truly a shame that this film was overshadowed by the overhyped Lola Rennt. I really enjoyed this film, which has a grit to it that can only be present with realistic characters. Watching this film, it was easy to identify with the characters, whose feelings and emotions are real (unlike many a Hollywood flick).

Ralf Herforth is convincing as the Albanian gangster Muhamer, and the other unknown actors do a great job portraying their characters.

There are German films that aren't relationship comedies or delve into recent history. This film is a gangster melodrama, set in the Turkish community of Hamburg Altona. We care about the fates of the colourful, not-always-do-goods, emphasise with their struggle against the life they live. KURZ UND SCHMERZLOS manages to reach a rare quality: it feels "real".