"Konrad & Katharina" is a German television movie from 2014, so thiese 90 minutes had their 5th anniversary last year. The director is Franziska Meletzky, who for some strange reason went by the male first name Francis here (and please don't say it is because of some nonsense that female filmmakers have a tougher time than male filmmakers). The two writers could not be any more different quality-wise. Ralf Husmann is really talented in my opinion and I have seen a lot from him. Elke Rössler, on the other hand, has a body of work that literally screams "simple-minded schmaltz" into my face. And the collaboration of these two went as expected basically. You can see that sometimes the story is pretty good (or at least entertaining) and sometimes it makes no sense at all. Husmann also tends to get away with more unrealistic stuff than other filmmakers frequently because there is always a tongue-in-cheek component to his writing and you can see that this film here does not take itself particularly seriously. The best example is basically when the male protagonist is there asking for a credit at his bank. What the employee tells him (even if correct as a message), rings really false overall and not professional at all. But it is also not funny, even if the actress tries so hard to make it that way (or to look like an uninspired antagonist). In any case, the outcome is just a mess. However, when this male character leaves the building, it is also over the top, but fairly entertaining at least. This male lead actor is played by Uwe Kockisch. German film buffs may have seen him in his trademark crime television show. So have I and I find it really unspired judging from the five episodes or so I have seen. Like a crime version of Katie Fforde and Rosamunde Pilcher basically. Not a fan of him really, even if I must say I always thought he looks much younger than he actually is. But that is the only positive thing I can come up with. In this film here, he is also rather forgettable. The good moments he has (like the one I just talked about) are rather because of the riting than his portrayal. He reminds me a bit of a poor man's Götz George. or I should say "poor" twice because Götz George was really amazing and Kockisch is not.
His performance in here also feels really forgettable because his female counterpart Christine Schorn does a really good job with what she is given here. Her comedic timing is excellent and she proves that without a doubt she is among the very best actresses from her generation here in Germany still. Just one example when she tells the boy that other hostages are hidden in a chest in the woods. And another example when they tied up the other woman, the latter says something like she is too young to die or so, and Schorn's reaction is just a "naja" implying that she may not be as young as she thinks she is. That was hilarious. I am pretty sure this came from Husmann and not Rössler. He is a master of dark humour and politcal incorrectness. Another example would be when again the woman they tied to the chair makes a statement that she does not want to get raped because she misheard a word her captors said, which was more harmless. Normally stuff like that would never even make it into 95% of German comedy movies that are shown in the afternoon like this one here was today because they are too scared of serious stuff like that, already the mention, even if it is mean in a completely humorous man the way they handled it here. And Husmann always manages to surprise us in an entertaining fashion, like when Neuhauser's character manages to get rid of her bonds (not sure this is the right word) and does not flee on her own or with the boy in the absence of the two elderly people, but instead keeps the boy from running away, even physically. This also shows really that Kockisch's and Schorn's characters here are not really evil. They are likable anti-heroes you can say for sure. If eventually they deserve to get away with all this unharmed (and maybe as heroes in fact almost), is debatable, but as they never intended to do something to the kid, it is easier to stomach. What plays a role is also their motivation. Sure they also made it for the money, but they had probably more valied motivations (like repairingg one's eyes) than the Austrian guy, who actually was a real kidnapper and probably only wanted to buy a super expensive car the moment he received the ransom. So yeah, this film is extremely unrealistic with the Austrian filling that antagonist role out of nowhere in order to help the two elderly people out of their predicament, but like I said Husmann somehow gets away with it. In liking the old fellas, it also helped probably that the boy was really fond of them and not fond at all of the Austrian dude. Still, all in all, I cannot give this film a thumbs-up, even if it is clearly above failure territory and I considered it here and there. But then, there are these weaker moments as well like when Neuhauser's character (normally don't like the actress at all, but here she was okay, you see I mention her a lot) tries to get away realizing it's not a real gun (also shows the captors' harmlessness) and the young boy holds her back. This little kid, really? Or Koschisch's character punching her? Come on, that wwas really cringeworthy. So yeah if you like stuff like Die Herbstzeitlosen or Die Spätzünder, then you can give this one a chance. Otherwise, I say skip it.
His performance in here also feels really forgettable because his female counterpart Christine Schorn does a really good job with what she is given here. Her comedic timing is excellent and she proves that without a doubt she is among the very best actresses from her generation here in Germany still. Just one example when she tells the boy that other hostages are hidden in a chest in the woods. And another example when they tied up the other woman, the latter says something like she is too young to die or so, and Schorn's reaction is just a "naja" implying that she may not be as young as she thinks she is. That was hilarious. I am pretty sure this came from Husmann and not Rössler. He is a master of dark humour and politcal incorrectness. Another example would be when again the woman they tied to the chair makes a statement that she does not want to get raped because she misheard a word her captors said, which was more harmless. Normally stuff like that would never even make it into 95% of German comedy movies that are shown in the afternoon like this one here was today because they are too scared of serious stuff like that, already the mention, even if it is mean in a completely humorous man the way they handled it here. And Husmann always manages to surprise us in an entertaining fashion, like when Neuhauser's character manages to get rid of her bonds (not sure this is the right word) and does not flee on her own or with the boy in the absence of the two elderly people, but instead keeps the boy from running away, even physically. This also shows really that Kockisch's and Schorn's characters here are not really evil. They are likable anti-heroes you can say for sure. If eventually they deserve to get away with all this unharmed (and maybe as heroes in fact almost), is debatable, but as they never intended to do something to the kid, it is easier to stomach. What plays a role is also their motivation. Sure they also made it for the money, but they had probably more valied motivations (like repairingg one's eyes) than the Austrian guy, who actually was a real kidnapper and probably only wanted to buy a super expensive car the moment he received the ransom. So yeah, this film is extremely unrealistic with the Austrian filling that antagonist role out of nowhere in order to help the two elderly people out of their predicament, but like I said Husmann somehow gets away with it. In liking the old fellas, it also helped probably that the boy was really fond of them and not fond at all of the Austrian dude. Still, all in all, I cannot give this film a thumbs-up, even if it is clearly above failure territory and I considered it here and there. But then, there are these weaker moments as well like when Neuhauser's character (normally don't like the actress at all, but here she was okay, you see I mention her a lot) tries to get away realizing it's not a real gun (also shows the captors' harmlessness) and the young boy holds her back. This little kid, really? Or Koschisch's character punching her? Come on, that wwas really cringeworthy. So yeah if you like stuff like Die Herbstzeitlosen or Die Spätzünder, then you can give this one a chance. Otherwise, I say skip it.