User Reviews

"Der Bockerer" (and there is no translation for this one as it's the main character's name) is an Austrian / West German co-production from 1981, which means this film has its 35th anniversary this year. The director is Franz Antel and quite a few writers worked on this one. Bockerer is the career-defining performance of Austrian actor Karl Merkatz and he won a German Film Award in a split decision for his lead performance here. This film is one that had also a sequel, but in a really rare case it took 15 years until the second film came out. Films 3 and 4 followed quicker. Merkatz, now in his mid-80s, is still acting, but after Antel's death it seems unlikely that a fifth film will be made at some point. On its IMDb page, the film is categorized as a historic drama, but I thought there was also some comedy in here, probably rather subtle on most occasions and not too obvious and it's the typical Austrian sense of humor that not everybody will appreciate. This film was also submitted by Austria to the Oscars in the Foreign Language category, but it did not manage the nomination. And I must say the Academy got it right. It baffles me to see this one at a huge 8.2 rating. I cannot understand it at all. This was neither a particularly smart nor a really historically relevant film that adds anything new to the genre. Merkatz was probably the best thing about the film, but not because of being great, just because of everything else being so mediocre and forgettable. I give this 100-minute film a thumbs-down. Not recommended.