"Pampa Blues" is a German television film from 2015 and this actually also premiered in October back then, so it really has its fifth anniversary this year and it happened just a few days ago. The director is very experienced filmmaker Kai Wessel, who has also been part of some big screen releases, but this does not necessarily say a lot about the qualityof the eventual outcome because this small screen release we have here is also an alright watch. Certainly a bit of a positive surprise. The wwriter of these minimally under 1.5 hours is Rolf Lappert and he is the exact epitome of Wessel because this is the only film he has worked on according to imdb. Makes me wonder if this was maybe novel-based (story-wise it feels a bit like a book) and he was the original writer, but not too important anyway. As for the cast, two names stand out. Lead actor Sven Gielnik is not one of those, even if he is still enjoying a mildly successful career out there. I am of course primarily talking about the attractive and talented Paula Beer, who plays the protagonist's love interest here and ho is enjoying a really successful career these days, not only because her work in Petzold movies, but also because of her inclusion in international projects. In this film, her character is also on a special mission as we find out, even if it may not be one we are initially suppsoed to believe. And the second would be Joachim Król. It is safe to say that 10 or even 20 years ago more people knew him than today and back then he was considered among the elite of German actors. Well, some may say this is still where they would put him, but there is just not this much exposure any more when it comes to his roles and presence in films. Which is not necessarily a bad thing. Here he does alright, even if the character does not have too much to offer. Klaus A. Müller-Oi is the actor who plays the demented grandfather and sadly he died less than a year after this film. That's pretty much it for the cast.
This film was on today before noon, probably because given the main characters' ages, this is more of a film for young audiences, but I as somebody in his mid30s also enjoyed it at times. Sure here and there the film exaggerates a bit or does not feel too authentic like when we find out Król's actor had global success with his career as an athlete back when he was younger or also the prison break scene shown at the television in the end was maybe not too authentic, but there is a certain charm to it all and that makes it easier to oversee some of the flaws. I also liked that they did not feel the need to stretch the story with the ailing grandfather deep into the second half, but there he is basically not really a part of the story anymore, even if he is obviously still a big part of the boy's life. In the second 45 minutes (or slightly under), the action moves on to the romance aspect, well from his side, as the main character and Beer's character get a little closer. We also find out that she has been the secret intruder (but, like I said, for other reasons than initially suspected) although she initially denies it. But in crappy films, it really would not have been her (and there are many, many crappy German television films out there), but here she eventually admits it. When the two are hanging out at the lake it is also funny to watch with her being the cool adventurous girl and him being the nerd. The scene when he goes for the kiss is a bit cringeworthy, but again her smile this moments makes up for it and, again like I said, the charme that comes with this film is undeniable. A lot of it is thanks to Paula Beer. At that point, she was indeed 19/20 like her character in this film and it is from briefly before her big breakthrough and this shows you how young she still is, even now in 2020. Bound to have a big career. So it was nice to see her in this film before her becoming really famous. It was clear she is bound for bigger challenges. Which should not say anything too negative about the movie we got here, but yeah, she elevates the material and is the key reason why this film gets better in the second half and eventually I give it a thumbs-up. All the UFO references about turning this place into a location for people curious about aliens were not exactly too interesting and could not have carried the film on their own. Same about the grandfather-son story and how he takes care for him. Maybe there, they tried to be a mit more emotional and as a consequence they felt more full of themselves then they had a right to from a creative perspective. And again it is Beer's character's letter in the end about him having to take care of his own life and needs as well. Which is definitely true, even if she regrets the challenge she gave him in the end. But the room with these leaves or what it was, blood-red leaves, on the wall was indeed super beautiful. Beer's character is right in saying so. It is also nice to see this attention to detail in a film where they knew it won't be seen by millions of people. All in all, there's many worse ways to spend a Sunday morning on. Admittedly also many better ways, but still after some slight hesitation, I give this film a thumbs-up. Cool title too, simpel yet effective, and the ending feels realistic and not too forced, which is definitely not always the case for German television films. Worth watching!
This film was on today before noon, probably because given the main characters' ages, this is more of a film for young audiences, but I as somebody in his mid30s also enjoyed it at times. Sure here and there the film exaggerates a bit or does not feel too authentic like when we find out Król's actor had global success with his career as an athlete back when he was younger or also the prison break scene shown at the television in the end was maybe not too authentic, but there is a certain charm to it all and that makes it easier to oversee some of the flaws. I also liked that they did not feel the need to stretch the story with the ailing grandfather deep into the second half, but there he is basically not really a part of the story anymore, even if he is obviously still a big part of the boy's life. In the second 45 minutes (or slightly under), the action moves on to the romance aspect, well from his side, as the main character and Beer's character get a little closer. We also find out that she has been the secret intruder (but, like I said, for other reasons than initially suspected) although she initially denies it. But in crappy films, it really would not have been her (and there are many, many crappy German television films out there), but here she eventually admits it. When the two are hanging out at the lake it is also funny to watch with her being the cool adventurous girl and him being the nerd. The scene when he goes for the kiss is a bit cringeworthy, but again her smile this moments makes up for it and, again like I said, the charme that comes with this film is undeniable. A lot of it is thanks to Paula Beer. At that point, she was indeed 19/20 like her character in this film and it is from briefly before her big breakthrough and this shows you how young she still is, even now in 2020. Bound to have a big career. So it was nice to see her in this film before her becoming really famous. It was clear she is bound for bigger challenges. Which should not say anything too negative about the movie we got here, but yeah, she elevates the material and is the key reason why this film gets better in the second half and eventually I give it a thumbs-up. All the UFO references about turning this place into a location for people curious about aliens were not exactly too interesting and could not have carried the film on their own. Same about the grandfather-son story and how he takes care for him. Maybe there, they tried to be a mit more emotional and as a consequence they felt more full of themselves then they had a right to from a creative perspective. And again it is Beer's character's letter in the end about him having to take care of his own life and needs as well. Which is definitely true, even if she regrets the challenge she gave him in the end. But the room with these leaves or what it was, blood-red leaves, on the wall was indeed super beautiful. Beer's character is right in saying so. It is also nice to see this attention to detail in a film where they knew it won't be seen by millions of people. All in all, there's many worse ways to spend a Sunday morning on. Admittedly also many better ways, but still after some slight hesitation, I give this film a thumbs-up. Cool title too, simpel yet effective, and the ending feels realistic and not too forced, which is definitely not always the case for German television films. Worth watching!
