Men to Kiss

I just loved this little German movie. It's cute, funny and has one of the best villains I ever experienced in a movie. You will love to hate Uta, the woman who tries to destroy the relationship of Earnest. He and Uta have been best friends since childhood and Earnest's new boyfriend Tobias is in her way to get the man of her dreams. The movie has a really good and honest lead performance from Frank Christian Marx as Earnest but it's Alexandra Starnitzky who steals the show here. The character of Udo Lutz as Tobias is a little over the top. But in one scene (you will know) he's hilarious. And the chemistry between the three actors is pretty intensive.

Männer zum Knutschen (2012), directed by Robert Hasfogel, is a German film shown in the U.S. as "Men to Kiss." Ernst (Frank Christian Marx) is a rather serious young banker, who is in a relationship with Tobi (Udo Lutz). Tobi is a will-of-the-wisp relaxed guy who lives to obtain pleasure for himself and others.

Ernie's childhood best friend, Uta (the beautiful Alexandra Starnitzky) arrives determined to destroy the relationship. (Also, if necessary, to destroy Tobi.) The plot of the movie is the interaction among the three of them. Added to the mix are Tobi's friends--some gay, some straight. It becomes clear to everyone--except, of course, Ernst--that if the relationship is to survive, Uta must be forced to leave. Uta, however, is a tough customer, who won't leave without a struggle.

Although I enjoyed the film, there were some weak aspects to it. Uta was so impossibly evil that even Ernst would have caught on sooner rather than later. Tobi's charm appealed to Ernst in the film, but would it appeal to him in real life? Would he really want a partner-- straight or gay--who lived solely for pleasure? We have to accept that for Ernst the answer was "yes." My thought was that sooner or later Ernst would want someone who cared about art, literature, politics, gay rights--something other than the next diversion.

Still, "Men to Kiss" was a pleasant enough movie. I enjoyed it, and would recommend it, although I don't think it's worth seeking out and seeing at all costs. The film was shown at the Little Theatre as part of the excellent ImageOut--the Rochester LGBT Film & Video Festival.

Here comes something unexpected. A German gay screwball comedy. The movie is a very enjoyable tale of friendship, relationships and the power of true love. It's a little movie with a bigger than life heart and very inspiring actors. I find myself falling in love with the lead Frank Christian Marx. An actor who I never heard before of but who's totally worth checking out. His portray of a clueless guy who has to choose between the love of his life and his female best friend is the real deal of the film. But the other performances are good as well, especially the villain is a very enjoyable woman you love to hate. A very big plus is the music which is something very different from other German movies, it sounds much more like a mix between Disney and danny elfman. I really liked it much more than I thought I would.

I've been really eager to see Men to Kiss, hoping it might finally be a German comedy I could enjoy. Nope. I'm starting to think - after at least two dozen tries - that I just never will get German humor.

To me it always seems heavy-handed, loud, grossly exaggerated, totally lacking in subtlety, intelligence, gentleness, depth and warmth. It's like The Three Stooges.

So if you love The Three Stooges and can't imagine anything funnier than The Three Stooges as German gays in love, then this is the movie for you; it's not for me.

Unfortunately, it's awful in every other way too. Every character is like a cartoon character, a shallow overblown caricature of a human being, with nothing inside its hard and garish shell. The direction is cartoonish too, with an extreme close-up of someone's mugging face in nearly every shot.

There is NO credibility or chemistry in the relationship between Ernst and Tobias, which is the core of the movie. They're not even credible human beings. If I can't believe that those two love each other, or even that they're real, how can I care what happens to them? I don't.

Early in the movie I started thinking the actors and even their characters seemed very familiar, and I finally realized that many of them (actors AND their characters, and even some of the sets) were in an earlier movie called Alex and Leo, which I also hated for exactly the same reasons.

Someone named Andre Schneider wrote (and produced, and acted in) both movies, so I'm going to add his name to my surprisingly short list of people whose work I will avoid like the plague from now on.

But if you saw and loved Alex and Leo, you doubtless will love this, its apparent sequel, too. Or, as I said, if the idea of the Three Stooges as gay Germans in love sends you rolling in the floor, you must not let this gem pass you by.

German comedy.... the definition of a contradiction in terms.