The problem with 'All of a Sudden' is that main character Karsten, scion of a prominent family in his provincial German town, is not a very likable individual. It is hard to feel sympathy for a man whom we first meet as he is about to cheat on his girlfriend, and still harder when, instead of calling for an ambulance when his 'other woman' falls seriously ill, instead wastes quarter of an hour running to the local clinic. (And his messy blond goatee did little to endear him to this particular reviewer, either!) The woman's death, in his flat, plunges Karsten into the personal and professional doldrums but through it all he shows little concern for the suffering of those around him - still less the dead woman's husband and child - but instead concentrates on his feelings of victimisation (the realisation his girlfriend is leaving him prompts an annoyed "You've been looking for an excuse" rather than an acknowledgement of his own faults). Under the circumstances a certain amount of feeling sorry for oneself is understandable, but could actor Sebastian Hülk have done more to encourage audience sympathy? Or is it just the case that Karsten is not a nice man?
An unlikable central character does of course set the film apart, and the mystery of just who the dead woman was and why she was at Karsten's party is nicely played-out without detracting from the central character study. The location shooting in the west German town of Altena provides some stunning autumnal landscapes. Other actors in the film - particularly Julia Jentsch as Karsten's girlfriend - provide competent performances. But I felt the film would have been more effective had it ended immediately after Karsten's confrontation with the woman's widower, even if the final few scenes are relevant to the story - and to the kind of man Karsten is.
In short, I have mixed feelings about this one, but it was probably worth watching once.
An unlikable central character does of course set the film apart, and the mystery of just who the dead woman was and why she was at Karsten's party is nicely played-out without detracting from the central character study. The location shooting in the west German town of Altena provides some stunning autumnal landscapes. Other actors in the film - particularly Julia Jentsch as Karsten's girlfriend - provide competent performances. But I felt the film would have been more effective had it ended immediately after Karsten's confrontation with the woman's widower, even if the final few scenes are relevant to the story - and to the kind of man Karsten is.
In short, I have mixed feelings about this one, but it was probably worth watching once.