What happens if your husband is early retired? That is the master question of Germany's famous actor, writer and director Vicco von Bülow's comedy. He understands very well to show the audience the small things of life, that can be funny as well. Although nothing important or extraordinary happens in this movie, it is interesting for every minute. You won't find simple jokes and gags (like in a Zucker movie) in this film, but you will be fascinated about the subtle sense of humor of Loriot. The only thing to criticise is the very poor quality of scenery and camerawork what seems to be an effect of the low budget of this film. But I would consider "Pappa ante portas" (a German-Latin play on words that means "Daddy in front of the door" and is an allusion to the Latin figure of speech "Hannibal ante portas") as one of the ten funniest German movies in the history of German comedies.
7 Reviews
Witty dialog and subtle humor
cengelm28 September 2000
Loriot(Vicco von Bülow) is possibly Germany's most wellknown comedian if we consider his comic books, his TV shows and his 2 films. His Prussian humor is unique and he prefers to be the pedantic gentleman who often struggles with tiny "errors" in his environment. "Pappa ante Portas" is the better of his 2 films where he plays a married man who disturbs his family because of his early retirement. Once again excellent his all time female companion Evelyn Hamann who plays his wife.
Overall rating: 9 (among the 5 best comedies of the 90s)
Overall rating: 9 (among the 5 best comedies of the 90s)
What to do when at home?
kosmasp21 November 2018
Something hopefully most of us have to face, is how to deal with life after work. But not only how we ourselves have to deal with it, but how others have to deal with us. Very dry humor ensues and situational comedy that most can relate to. While it may be outdated in some respects (newspapers, electronic devices missing and so forth), it still is more than an accurate depiction (read: heightened to an extent) of (pension) life.
Maybe your family life is different and you can't relate to everything shown here. But even so you will be able to understand what the characters go through. There is no wrong and right in general, although you may find yourself picking sides on certain issues. If the man does something, you might feel that he's right, if the woman does something contrary you may be on her side. Whatever you feel, you will feel the dread ... but even more so the comedy behind it all
Maybe your family life is different and you can't relate to everything shown here. But even so you will be able to understand what the characters go through. There is no wrong and right in general, although you may find yourself picking sides on certain issues. If the man does something, you might feel that he's right, if the woman does something contrary you may be on her side. Whatever you feel, you will feel the dread ... but even more so the comedy behind it all
Definitely the definite German comedy of the 90s
flseibel5 May 2002
Pappa ante portas is witty, intelligent, very clever, very well made, nicely cast, mean, and - we all have to admit it - truer to life than we would like it to be. Loriots humor is based upon his own experience with the German Middle and Upper Classes, Loriot being a part of the Upper Class himself. True self-irony and reflective humor can only spring from knowing ones own faults. Formidable! Watch it! (I wonder if they could make an English synchro of it)
A great way of humour!
May-1610 September 1999
Pappa Ante Portas is a movie,you can watch over and over again and you´ll still love it.I´ve seen it about 10 times and I´m still rolling on the floor laughing.Loriot really has a wonderful way of humour and the movie is full of little details and intelligently made background gags. Apart from that,the acting is absolutely superb.Loriot and Evelyne Hamann really make the best(and the funniest) out of their characters! The best thing is,that the situations are very near to the real life and totally weird at the same time. This film is full of strange but wonderful humour and I recommend to everyone who wants to see some intelligent comedy. This movie is nothing for fans of no-brainer-flicks!
peak comedy
gabriel4k10 October 2021
Infact the funniest movie ever made. Enjoy!
Loriot is a great actor and comedian, he totally nailed it with this one. Way better then his other movie "ödopussy", and in my opinion one of the best german movies of the 90s. EVERY single scene is funny and totally on point. I can totally reccomend this movie.
Loriot is a great actor and comedian, he totally nailed it with this one. Way better then his other movie "ödopussy", and in my opinion one of the best german movies of the 90s. EVERY single scene is funny and totally on point. I can totally reccomend this movie.
Scenes of a marriage
Horst_In_Translation16 March 2016
Warning: Spoilers
"Pappa ante Portas" is the second and last full feature film (after "Ödipussi) written by, directed by and starring late German entertainer Loriot (at almost 70) aka Vicco von Bülow and this one here is also already 25 years old, but by many considered one of the finest German comedy films ever made and definitely proof that Germans can make funny films as well. In this one, Loriot plays a man who has worked for decades, but after making a somewhat stupid decision about buying a bit too much typewriting paper, he gets told by his (considerably older) boss that it is time to retire. This also sounds like a potentially good drama movie, but it is really all comedy here. Loriot gets help from a couple familiar faces from his career, most of all Evelyn Hamann (rip), with whom he worked together for a very long time too and these two are the perfect example that you can be the closest friends and colleagues without being an actual couple.
But back to this movie: When Mr. Lohse is retired by his boss, his wife and son, just like himself, struggle a lot to get used to the new situation and finally it looks like the best way out of the chaos is for his wife to stop being a housewife and get a job herself instead. Some people just can't live with or without each other. There is a lot of situational comedy in this film and Loriot is probably the best take on this genre that Germany has to offer. It comes in terms of actions by the characters or words, which makes it very difficult to understand (in both senses of the word) for non-German audiences and I am also sure that it would be a huge challenge for a translator to make English subtitles for this one without losing the goofiness and humor the script has from beginning to end. I thought the IMDb rating for this one may be a bit too high, but it was still a decent watch and at least on par with "Ödipussi". I recommend "Pappa ante Portas". Thumbs up and my favorite scene is probably the one at the grocery store when he order all the mustard. Pretty perfect scene from everybody involved: My Name is Lohse and I am shopping here!"
But back to this movie: When Mr. Lohse is retired by his boss, his wife and son, just like himself, struggle a lot to get used to the new situation and finally it looks like the best way out of the chaos is for his wife to stop being a housewife and get a job herself instead. Some people just can't live with or without each other. There is a lot of situational comedy in this film and Loriot is probably the best take on this genre that Germany has to offer. It comes in terms of actions by the characters or words, which makes it very difficult to understand (in both senses of the word) for non-German audiences and I am also sure that it would be a huge challenge for a translator to make English subtitles for this one without losing the goofiness and humor the script has from beginning to end. I thought the IMDb rating for this one may be a bit too high, but it was still a decent watch and at least on par with "Ödipussi". I recommend "Pappa ante Portas". Thumbs up and my favorite scene is probably the one at the grocery store when he order all the mustard. Pretty perfect scene from everybody involved: My Name is Lohse and I am shopping here!"
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