SYNOPSICS
Der Architekt (2008) is a German movie. Ina Weisse has directed this movie. Harald Abdelhamed,Josef Bierbichler,Hark Bohm,Maria Hofstätter are the starring of this movie. It was released in 2008. Der Architekt (2008) is considered one of the best Drama movie in India and around the world.
Georg is a 58-year-old successful architect. When he learns by phone that his mother had died in his home village in the Alps, he initially did not inform his wife Eva about the death. Later he drives her and his adult children Reh and Jan to the funeral in the car. He had not been to his home village for twenty years; he hides the secret of having an illegitimate son there. At the funeral, he tries not to show his restlessness. When the return trip is blocked due to the weather and the family cannot leave the village, the pastor Georg and his family ask for the will to be opened. His great love Hannah, an ex-teacher and his illegitimate son Alex are also present. His mother used her grandson Alex as the sole heir. The truth about his double life comes to light. Eva and the children are stunned.
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Der Architekt (2008) Reviews
Life catches up with everyone
At the start of this drama an architect is told about the death of his mother. Having grown apart from her he isn't in the biggest rush to go out to the far away little village to bury her but his wife pushes him on and they go anyway - father, mother and two kids. Once there it becomes clear that there are more things going on than should be - parts of the past of the man get out in the open and not of all of them are nice ones. And with that this dramatic story of a family begins. It doesn't take any effort to predict where it all will end but the way to get there is more than entertaining enough to keep the film interesting. Life isn't necessarily beautiful - it's a series of happenings and choices and sometimes the ending result of those make sure that people that once decided to stay together for the rest of their lives do no longer wish to do so. This film clearly shows what happens when one does not take the full responsibility for a mistake after it is made. It's a fairly painful message, and a long lingering dark after thought. 7 out of 10 broken homes
Sadly, madly, deadly
Excellent movie. It starts funny, then gets weird, and ends sad. The plot follows a straight line from the city into the mountains, and from everyday tedium to singular despair. The story proceeds as if by necessity, yet it's never predictable. Almost all characters are damaged and twisted in fascinating ways. Working with an outstanding ensemble of first-rate actors, Ina Weisse makes us take them at face value. In no time at all, these creeps feel like you've known them forever, or you're one of them. Hannah, a single working mom in a backward village, technically gets the worst deal, but makes the best of it. Played by the amazing Sophie Rois, she turns out the most likable in my book. But they all have their perks. Josef Bierbichler, in the part of the crippled patriarch, is obviously a giant. Hilde Van Mieghem is great as his snotty, frustrated wife. Sandra Hüller, of "Requiem" fame, brings their unhappy over-achiever of a daughter to life in exciting ways. Matthias Schweighöfer, whom I can't stand in most movies, sheds new light on the age-old part of the prodigal son. Go see with family. It's a family movie, but not the way you think. Not at all. - Writer-director Ina Weisse is an established actress, but this is her first feature-length film. I hope there's more to come.
Interesting film, yet a bit over-the-top
"Der Architekt" tells an interesting variation of the old story of a family confronted with serious trouble caused by underlying interpersonal problems and a "dark" secret from the past. This is always a good basis for a psychological drama. However, pretty much of it is exaggerated and overacted (which is, by the way and IMHO, still typical of German cinema: "Real" people simply don't behave the same way as most of the on-screen characters). And many metaphors/symbols are simply carried too far (e.g., the name "Winter" for the troubled lead character stumping through the all-present discomforting winter landscape). Josef Bierbichler is really great, but the rest of the cast can't keep up with him. This is especially true of the currently way overrated Matthias Schweighöfer. He should really take some acting classes in order to get rid of his mannerisms (e.g., constant grimacing); his performance is plain awful.
Never fulfills its premise
"Der Architekt" is a German movie from 2008, so this one will have its 10th anniversary next year. It is the only full feature written and directed by prolific actress Ina Weisse and looking at what I saw in here I cannot really be too mad that the did not make more of these except the short films from early in her career. I do believe that she had a pretty solid cast in here that easily could have turned the film into something more memorable, but the script of this 90-minute movie just comes too short on many occasions. The film is mostly a drama, but there is a moment here and there when the film(maker) goes for subtle and sometimes relatively dark comedy, maybe to make it all a lighter watch. But these are the moments when the film is probably at its weakest as it really just feels for the sake of it. IOne example would be a scene about a character's leg that they made look like a sex scene for the laughs and giggles. And as for the drama, it is hardly any better. It feels pretty disappointing to see an actor like Bierbichler, who I think is quite talented, wasted in scenes like him standing naked in a snow landscape. The scenery and setting is still among the better aspects of the film here as it adds a decent atmosphere at times, but the cinematography is eventually also not good enough on its own to make up for all the other flaws here. Hüller I usually also like more than in this one and we saw in Toni Erdmann what she is capable of, a true powerhouse performance compared to this one. Schweighöfer is one of the most (if not the most) overrated German actors and even if it's nice for once to see him play an entirely different character than in all his stupid romantic comedy dramas, it also becomes painfully obvious how he is miscast for everything that requires dramatic depth and range and this includes this film here too. Nothing about Rois here is worthy of winning a German Film Award.This is a film about a father who needs to reflect on his life, profession and relationships, especially with his children. This is a subject that has been done many times and I dare say most times it was handled more interestingly and realistically than here. A missed opportunity really and if Weisse ever decides to make another film, then I hope she has considerably stepped up since a decade ago. Don't watch.
Awful
Actually, awful doesn't even begin to describe how bad this film is. It's not the campy kind of bad that eventually turns good, but a complete piece of garbage utterly devoid of any taste and/or morale. Being an architect myself, I only wanted to see it because the title made me believe that it would have something to do with architecture. It didn't. In fact, the titular character could have just as well been a banker, a lawyer or a butcher, for that matter. Why anyone insisted on him being an architect and then going that far to even name the film after his profession is way beyond me. Now I regret resisting the urge to switch it off after the first 20 minutes or so, because I honestly believed that it would somehow begin to make some sense until the end. Instead, I irreversibly wasted a good hour and a half of my life I could have spent way more productively, like staring at en empty wall, per instance. To sum it up: this film has absolutely nothing to do with architecture. It could be classified as a family drama, but the purpose of its existence escapes me. If it tried to convey a message, it failed; if it tried to shock, it failed (nice try though); if it tried to be poetic, it failed miserably. Anyone who wants to see a quality drama with a strong story, good acting and remotely plausible event development, should avoid it at any cost. 1/10