Run Lola Run

Rating:
Summary: A visual and mind stimulating ride...
Review: While watching this move for perhaps the 8th or 9th time I realize that foriegn film makers just know how to do things right. This movie keeps you going from beginning to end. It amazes me the drivel of films that we get here in America. Whenever I am out I make a point to get my friends to go see somethng out of the ordinary and nine times out of ten, the result is fantastic. Usually resulting in the viewing of brilliant fare like Run Lola Run. The story in this film is filled with more thought than ten "blockbusters" could provide you with. If you like this film check out Monsoon Wedding, The Devils Backbone, Best In Show, The Professional and East West to name a few.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome Lola Awesome
Review: This film took me by surprise years ago and has remained on my "Most Favorite" list. The music is great as it keeps time with the action. Whether you have a great sound system or not, Lola is outstanding both visually (with director Twyker's interesting use of colors) AND audibly (is that a word?).
Usually I don't care for foreign films, but I'll watch this one over and over again!

Rating:
Summary: a pleasure to watch
Review: A heart racing, pulse surging and foot stomping ride of a movie that is adventurous in its filming and reverberating in its effects.

A pleasure to watch.

Rating:
Summary: Raver Fairy Tale
Review: First, to appreciate the background behind "Run Lola Run" it helps to have some perspective on modern German society. Here are some observations to set the stage:

For most Germans, if they well in school or learn a trade, and are willing to work hard and pay their dues, they will be rewarded with a conventional, comfortable lifestyle. They will have 6 weeks vacation, enjoy inexpensive holiday resorts, live in a comfortable if cramped flat, have paid medical care, and eventually mortgage themselves for fifty years to buy a house or their own flat. Und--they VILL enjoy it!

However, for those people living in the sections that were formerly communist East Germany, unemployment is higher, and all over Germany, if anyone has a dysfunctional family, or has some kind of problem, or just doesn't fit in, life can be very tough and very hopeless. This is the state that a lot of young people find themselves in, especially around Berlin, Halle, Magdeburg and other of the larger, more troubled German urban areas.

Now, this is the backdrop for Lola and her boyfriend Manni. Manni is beginning a promising career as a drug dealer, making his first score. He is on the point of delivering the bag of cash to the mob boss. Never mind that this little career move will most likely land him 15 years in prison followed by a lifetime of being shunned and being practically unemployable; that is, if he survives the police hunt for his sorry arse. But Manni feels hopeless and trapped, so what's the risk? Lola, who comes from a wealthy but dysfunctional Berlin family, is needy and eager to help her Manni. Neither question the outcome of their actions.

Yes, they both goof up, Lola forgets her assignment and goes off for a pack of smokes, Manni panics and now his very life is on the line. And Lola volunteers to help, putting her life on the line, though she doesn't realize that she is in peril. She has twenty minutes to solve this life-and-death issue. And she DOES it, while filmed like a rock video in flashes, running like a madwoman through Berlin to get to the prize.

If you don't like the outcome, the inevitable, the sad, just wait a minute, the filmmaker, god that he is, can change all that for you. If you want a fairy godmother, he's prepared to be one for you. Just scream like an infant, as Lola does, and director Tom Tykwer will grant your wish. If you then don't like that particular wave of his magic wand, well, wait another minute. But don't look too closely, or you will see an accusation that actions DO have consequences.

Though filmed creatively and in burst-like flashes, the story is completely coherent and even has a moral, or two, or three.
As to the film itself, it is better letterboxed to appreciate the cinematography. The subtitles are accurate, though the swears and other nasty epithets are made a bit milder than actually they are in vernacular German--perhaps because they look pretty stark when printed rather than spoken. This is a film that is worth seeing quite a few times to pick up the nuances and missed frames--you can't blink for a second because you will miss something important.

HIGHLY Recommended --entertaining, yet good for family discussions about choices in life.

Rating:
Summary: Simple film that captures your attention
Review: Run Lola run is a foreign film (German with English subtitles) that has much mainstream appeal. Without giving away too much the story revolves around Lola and her Boyfriend (Manni) in a bid to get 100,000 Marks in 20 minutes to save Manni from a rather unpleasant encounter with some thugs. The film moves at a fast pace as it replays the same 20 minutes over and over each showing how actions even trivial ones may have a profound effects on others. For example in one running Lola bumps into a woman and that triggers a series of events that causes the woman to lose her child to protective services which leads her to kidnap a baby. In another running she merely brushes past the woman and the woman ends up winning the lottery and lives happily ever after.

Far from being bored with the replaying of the 20 minutes the move keeps your attention as you watch for the discrepancies between the runs. You find yourself asking was that element in the previous run? Why is that person walking there? Do they have a part in a future running? Just when you think you know everything about the runs the final run still has eye openers...

The DVD has an English soundtrack that almost makes you feel that your not watching a foreign language film at all with the action and the sound track being so in sync.

Rating:
Summary: It's like watching MTV with a plot
Review: Lola, she of the magenta hair and speedy running, has just received a call from her boyfriend that he is in major trouble with some goons and needs Lola to come to his aid with 100,000 deustche marks in 20 minutes or else he will die. Lola doesn't really know how she can do this, but whatever she does, it has to be quick. Therefore, Lola must run .....

The movie plays out three different scenarios of how Lola can (or can't) save the day. The movie is fast-paced and ingenious, and will keep you on the edge of your seat. Run Lola RUN!

Rating:
Summary: Interesting premise
Review: This movie explores the variations that affect our day. Most of the time, small changes wouldn't mean much. But, when life is on the line, one small change can have a profound impact on the following decisions, events, and coincidents. This movie is brave enough to show them, taking a page from Rashomon, which shows the same events from 3 different perspectives.

However, where this movie lost me was caring for the characters. The boyfriend whose life is on the line is a gangster, a drug dealer. Why would I care if he lives or dies? So he can poison the youth later on?

Overall, the DVD is average. There's not many extras, but it is a 2-sided DVD that has both widescreen and full-screen versions (for those of you that like to miss 40% of the movie). This movie may worth a watch, not much more.

Rating:
Summary: An amazing and action packed experimental film
Review: Run Lola Run is the result of a great experiment in film. Despite little characterization, scattered dialogue and a very basic plot, it fully succeeds in its intentions.

The simplistic plot concerns Lola receiving a phone call from her boyfriend Mannie, who has 20 minutes to come up with 100,000 deutsch marks or faith the wrath of a crime boss. Lola sets off to find a way to come up with the money before Mannie resorts to robbery. That's it. But the trick of the film lies in the retelling of those 20 minutes in three separate scenarios as Lola is given multiple chances to get things right.

But the filmmakers don't need a second chance to get this film right. The pulsating techno soundtrack perfectly connects with the beautiful images of Lola running, trying to beat destiny. There's just something about the urgency in her eyes and the gracefulness with which she runs that won't let you take your eyes away from her. The film also explores how extremely minor events, such as brushing against someone, can have profound impacts on the rest of a person's life.

There's really not a whole lot more I can say about Run Lola Run. It's just a very small, short film (an 80 minute running time) that perfectly captures its subject. This one is definitely recommended, even for those that normally may avoid foreign language films. You just can't miss out on it.

Rating:
Summary: Philosophy + Film + Frantic Pace = an incredible film
Review: "Run Lola Run" (the English rendering of the German "Lola Rennt", of which a mroe literal translation is "Lola Runs") was the feature debut of actor Franka Potente (Lola) and director Tom Tykwer. Both deliver command performances.

The plot revolves around Lola's attempt to find 10 000 marks for her boyfriend, Manni (Moritz Bleibtreu), who risks death at the hands of his gangster boss if he doesn't come up with the money. Lola's response to Manni's frantic phone call in the opening scenes is to run to her father's bank to see if he can help, encountering a series of passers-by along the way.
Where "Lola" differs from the conventional structure of a film is that there are in fact three separate stories told. Each features the same general premise - outlined above - but the results of Lola's run vary incredibly. This process was the most talked-about feature of the film, and as such does not come as that much of an adjustment to the viewer in 2003.

As well as the differing end results of Lola's run, the people she encounters have different stories told about them. Lola runs into (literally in some cases) many different characters, a mother pushing a pram and a man selling his bike being the two most memorable. Each of these characters reacts to Lola's presence and then a series of photos is shown explaining what happens to them afterwards - these results also change (drastically) from story to story.

A third feature is the "red scenes" in between the main stories. Tykwer deliberately keeps the audience in the dark as to the meaning of these dialogues between Lola and Manni ranging over various philosophical topics - do they happen before or after the story in question? do they happen at all? regardless, they serve to increase the peculiarity of this film.

And what a film it is. Potente (who also contributes vocals to the soundtrack) is a highly accomplished actor - more familiar to American audiences as Matt Damon's sidekick in "The Bourne Identity" - and is capable of almost every emotion in the book here. Lola's screaming has to be heard to be belived, especially in the opening scenes. Bleibtreu, in what is a relatively small role, proves Potente's equal and it is surely only a matter of time before he too appears in a major Hollywood film. The other actors are somewhat hampered by the pace of the film which doesn't really allow them any much character development - often, whatever development is made in one story needs to be totally discarded in the next. They do, however, acquit themselves adequately.

"Lola" is, after all is said and done, Tykwer's film. From the opening collection of quotes - including the enigmatic "Nach dem Spiel ist vor dem Spiel" (after the game is before the game) - and the ominously ticking clock, it is clear that he is not going to let the audience have a minute to think. Lola's running scenes are shot at strange angles, in split screen and some scenes feaure the same shot repeated three times on the screen at once. All of this is done to a pounding soundtrack of German techno, some of which is composed by Tykwer himself. Tykwer has a wicked sense of humour in places, the toughs driving the car and the sunglasses-wearing nun always provoke laughs. The dialogue between Manni and Lola about Manni's feelings for her is also very well-written, both in the German and the subtitled English.
One of the most effective scenes is the opening one, a blurred shot of a crowd of people with a voiceover asking questions like "where are we coming from?" and "where are we going?", followed by a line from the man who is later revealed to be the bank security guard: "The ball is round, the game lasts 90 minutes, everything else is mere theory".

In the end, what is "Lola" all about? That question is almost impossible to answer. Tykwer certainly has something to say, and the general consensus is that it deals with the random nature of modern life and also with the question of fate versus pre-determinism. One thing is for sure, this film is best viewed with friends and family as you will need someone to discuss the issues raised with. Rgeardless of the philosophical bent of the film, it is an action-packed masterpiece well worth seeing.

Is this film for everyone? Probably not. The oddities in the construction will put many off, which is a shame since it is a film which will benefit from the widest possible exposure. This film thus comes heartily recommended for anyone who enjoys a challenging viewing experience and doesn't simply watch movies to be told a story.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome
Review: This is my absolute favorite movie. I first saw this on the Bravo channel and was intrigued by the concept. I rented it and fell in love with this movie. The actors Franka Potente and Moritz Blietzbleu(I cannot spell today) were so human in their emotions and motivation. This movie was extremely refreshing in comparison to all but a few American movies today. I loved all of the characters in this movie and the idea and reality of someone's fate being affected by time and the smallest actions of others is genius of the director. This film is a landmark in all modern cinema.
Also Reccomended: La Femme Nikita, The Professional,
Die Another Day