User Reviews

"Die Hitzewelle - Keiner kann entkommen" or "Heat Wave" is a German film from 2008, so this one has its 10th anniversary next year and it was directed by Gregor Schnitzler and written by Demke and Schnier, all of them experienced in small screen projects, but honestly experience is only a pro when this experience includes several halfway decent projects and this is not the case here with the exception of "Barfuß bis zum Hals" maybe. So yeah this project was somewhat doomed from the beginning you could perhaps say, but the outcome is even more disappointing than I expected. There are some names in the cast of this 90-minute film here where I would say that you frequently find them in television productions or films in general that try to make a great impact, but come extremely short because of all kinds of low production values and talent missing from most of the people involved. Rolf Kanies would be such an example from the cast here. Anyway, back to this one here: The film's focus is on rising temperatures above 40°C and the population suffering from that. The heavy situation is depicted through old people collapsing for example, so you could also call this one here a catastrophe film, even if said catastrophe is a slow process and not a sudden explosion or anything. And if this does not convince you it is a catastrophe film, then I guess what will convince you is the final inclusion of bacteria that poses a danger to the entire population of the city. Honestly, this ending twist away from the heat issue is one where I felt the filmmakers had enough of the subject themselves even and it was pretty embarrassing. Other than that, the film is basically a failure from start to finish. Dialogs feel rarely authentic, characters lack shades decisively, it takes itself far more seriously than it has any right to, it uses the idea of a "likable" one man army, this time a woman, who is kind-hearted, realizes all the problems and dangers and is just more competent than the teams of scientists who she desperately tries to convince and who won't listen to her. That is a procedure and idea you find in many films that make it easy for simple people to identify with the perfect protagonist while even mistaking the film for something that offers depth. When it is all the opposite obviously. And yes of course, there is a happy ending. What else can you say about this one here. It is a definite contender for worst career effort for everybody working on and showing up in it. The epitome of a German disaster movie where the production is a much bigger disaster than the plot. And there are many like this. You really want to skip it.