User Reviews

"Es war einmal Indianerland" or "Once Upon a Time... Indianerland" is a German German-language movie that premiered in autumn 2017 and this one was directed by Ilker Çatak, his first full feature film after many short films and also some television documentary work. For writer Nils Mohl, these approximately 95 minutes were the first screenplay credit ever. The movie received some awards attention, but not that much. DSame can be said about the actors here, some of them well-known to German film buffs like myself, others not so much. Lead actor Scheicher I have not come across before. Same about Polley. Emilia Schüle is of course really famous here in Germany, among the most known from her age group, while Swiss actor Basman also has made some waves in the last 10 years despite his relatively young age. Johannes Klaußner (son of Burkhart) is on bord too and in terms of the older ones Clemens Schick can easily be recognized playing a most violent guy whil Bjarne Mädel (and it is very wrong to only mention Stromberg for him) is a great scene stealer on two brief occasions only sadly. So like I just said, I did not know lead actor Leonard Scheicher before watching this film and this makes it of course a bit of a challenge to appreciate him and the movie as a whole as he had to win me over from zero. Did he? Probably not. But he wasn't bad either and not among the film's weakest aspects. It is a coming-of-age movie, a genre that rarely goes and feels really right here in Germany. I would not say that it worked out particularly well here. You get the usual components like drugs, sex and also violence, more talked about than seen on screen really, but the puzzle pieces are not fitting particularly well together this time. So the final outcome for me in witnessing this young man's story was how his relationship struggles would work out as he was stuck between his childhood crush and another woman who has set eyes on him that may be better for him, but not as attractive as the one he (initially) wants. This was also a problem here. i must say it did not feel too realistic how at some point he fell for the chick with the glasses. Not that she was really that unattractive or unlikable, on the contrary, but he seemed so focus on the other one almost in an obsessive way at times (not dangerous though) and if she finally wants him, then he goes for the other? Him I did not feel it. I must add that I also had the impression they made too little of value that could have been memorable about his boxing background. And his family background. Schick is such a talented actor and he was wasted for the most superficial story here. Emilia Schüle had better material to work with, but the way her character was written also wasn't on par with her as always stunning looks. So as a whole, this is another German movie that tries to be wild and breathtaking and have audiences on the edges of their seats, but the writing talent all in all just wasn't there. Also a bit surprising to see somebody in charge for this not low-key project that had no experience before that. Admittedly it is not just the writing, but also some other areas that turn this ino a weaker watch than it could have been. It is never really a failure, but also not good enough for a positive recommendation in my opinion. I give this movie a thumbs-down and suggest skipping it. The title is also not a good choice by any means (same for the English title). Sounds like watch bait only to me. The metaphorical reference made in here is extremely shallow. Don't get tricked. Watch something else instead.