IMDb RATING
6.3/10
3.3K
YOUR RATING
Two police detectives, a grizzled veteran and one fresh-faced rookie, hunt a ritualistic serial killer murdering people with tattoos and skinning them.Two police detectives, a grizzled veteran and one fresh-faced rookie, hunt a ritualistic serial killer murdering people with tattoos and skinning them.Two police detectives, a grizzled veteran and one fresh-faced rookie, hunt a ritualistic serial killer murdering people with tattoos and skinning them.
- Awards
- 2 wins & 4 nominations
Reinhardt Firchow
- Polizeipräsident
- (as Reinhart Firchow)
Sybille J. Schedwill
- Petra
- (as Sibylle Schedwill)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe tattoos in the "tattoo exhibition room" were produced on actual goat skin.
- GoofsWhen Marc chases the suspect, who just heard a message on the walkie-talkie and saw him on the balcony, in one shot you can see Marc just turning left the corner and in the subsequent shot he's turning right the same looking corner.
- ConnectionsReferences The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Featured review
Finally a hip Euro-Thriller that's worth watching
Though this movie does have more than passing similarities to David Fincher's SE7EN, I feel that comparing the two is unfair and, in my opinion, downright unwise. It is true that TATTOO unfolds in an ever rainy cityscape; follows the lives of two police detectives (with a vast generation and experience gap) while they chase a killer. And yes, it plays its drama out amidst a seedy German underworld
However, what transpires amidst this spectacularly visualized tapestry full of rave parties, torture chambers, skin rooms, and body modification cliques willing to sell the tattoos off their body for quick cash, is vastly different in tone and theme from Fincher's 'who done it, and why' police procedural. Here the characters are not shown as black and white, but rather in shades of gray. Their lives, their dilemmas, are the real story. Even the reasons for the killings are presented in such a way that makes you understand, if not empathize, with those that a standard Hollywood picture would casually demonize. This element of moral ambiguity, under the remarkably controlled direction of Schwentke, creates a dark, cold, and subtly stylized world, that surprisingly plays as very very real.
It is encouraging to see a European film with the refined sensibility of European cinema combined so adeptly with a genre so intrinsically American. It is also hard to believe that this is Schwentke's directorial debut. (I for one will keep my eye on him.)
It's a remarkable film, and I certainly hope it blows the doors open for other genre films shot in Germany, and in Europe as a whole. Not since viewing Spoorloos (The Vanishing) have I been so impressed. If you have a chance, don't hesitate to catch it on the big screen. It's gorgeous, it's ballsy, and it's worth it.
However, what transpires amidst this spectacularly visualized tapestry full of rave parties, torture chambers, skin rooms, and body modification cliques willing to sell the tattoos off their body for quick cash, is vastly different in tone and theme from Fincher's 'who done it, and why' police procedural. Here the characters are not shown as black and white, but rather in shades of gray. Their lives, their dilemmas, are the real story. Even the reasons for the killings are presented in such a way that makes you understand, if not empathize, with those that a standard Hollywood picture would casually demonize. This element of moral ambiguity, under the remarkably controlled direction of Schwentke, creates a dark, cold, and subtly stylized world, that surprisingly plays as very very real.
It is encouraging to see a European film with the refined sensibility of European cinema combined so adeptly with a genre so intrinsically American. It is also hard to believe that this is Schwentke's directorial debut. (I for one will keep my eye on him.)
It's a remarkable film, and I certainly hope it blows the doors open for other genre films shot in Germany, and in Europe as a whole. Not since viewing Spoorloos (The Vanishing) have I been so impressed. If you have a chance, don't hesitate to catch it on the big screen. It's gorgeous, it's ballsy, and it's worth it.
helpful•146
- Ebonsun
- Oct 19, 2002
- How long is Tattoo?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Тату
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross worldwide
- $1,507,221
- Runtime1 hour 48 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content