Let's talk about you and me ... no pun intended. Actually there is a scene where the main couple of the movie is ... talking to each other. I am not sure if the script/movie is super close to the source material - the book that is. Because as you can guess I have not read it yet.
There have been others who have tried to make a movie out of this - I reckon the most famous one is from Kubrick himself (my reference above). I have seen that one, but it has been way too long for me to remember any specifics ... except the talks about nudity and edited pictures ... and also the love life of Tom Cruise back then.
Nikolai Kinski takes on that role - if the name sounds familiar: his father was Klaus Kinski. And looking at him, you can see similarities or a likeness if you want to call it that. Which hopefully will help you not imagine or thinking too much about Tom Cruise or the other movie while watching that.
Saying all that, the movie references quite a few people and influences - be it Romero, Cronenberg or even Stephen King. I am certain I didn't get all of them with the first watch. See this is a homage and the movie giving props to people who have done this before (not exclusively the novel, but influences in so many ways).
The German dub feels a bit off putting (it was shot in English for the world market, which makes sense), but on the other hand it might help with the main theme and the characters struggle. On the other hand for a low budget this really takes the cake ... it makes the most of it as it seems. As Kinski said (in a Q&A after the movies showing) he did his own stunts - and while the action scene might take some out of the movie, it felt like one of the Highlights for me - action and stunt scene. Well shot and edited too.
Also the animated sequence that apparently is in no other adaptation so far ... well it is a very good one. And while technology has evolved quite a bit, there were real artists included as the director also said after the movie.
So if you are able to overlook some of the flaws - and remember that this is a low budget affair (no money was given by the German state, there was some tax break, though even that had to be won over by jumping through a lot of hoops), go out and support independent cinema if you can. Also there is nudity and one very vivid violent scene - trigger warning as some might say ... keep that in mind.
