Oliver Korittke Movies
The Tschirn brothers have their share of problems. Middle brother Hans-Jörg (Moritz Bleibtreu of Run Lola Run) is a librarian who neglects his duties in order to ogle every attractive woman that enters his workplace. His clumsy efforts to make conversation with them go nowhere. He takes his fetishistic peeping a step further, following women into the ladies room so he can sit in the next stall and pleasure himself while he spies on them. Older brother Werner (Herbert Knaup), a successful Green Party politico, would seem to be a bit more together, but his home life is in shambles. His wife, Signe (Katja Riemann of Rosenstrasse), no longer responds to his marital advances, and seems to have an unhealthily intimate relationship with their rebellious teenage son, Ralf (Tom Schilling), who spends much of his time trying to videotape his father's every embarrassment. Younger brother Martin has had a sex change and become Agnes (Martin Weiss). Agnes is a good-natured person, but profoundly unhappy, perhaps stemming from his unfulfilled relationship with an American fashion designer (played by Monster's Ball producer Lee Daniels in a cameo). But Hans-Jörg blames all of their problems on their father, Günther (Vadim Glowna), and can't even bring himself to visit the old man. Agnes and His Brothers, written and directed by Oskar Roehler, was selected by the Museum of Modern Art and the Film Society of Lincoln Center for inclusion in the 2005 edition of New Directors/New Films. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
- Starring:
- Martin Weiss, Moritz Bleibtreu, (more)
- 2002
Written and directed by the filmmaking team of Gerhard Ertl and Sabine Hiebler, this odd German comedy is about three couples and the way their lives cross paths at one gas station. The first pair of lovers meets at the gas station where the man works. Falling in love, they decide to live together at the station. Next, the second couple arrives with a peculiar proposal. It seems the woman is fatally ill and they'd always dreamed of owning a gas station together, so they've come to offer to buy it. Finally, the third couple, a bank robbing duo, enters the story with plans to stick up the station. Nominated for the top prize at Germany's 2002 Max Ophuls Festival, Nogo had its U.S. premiere at the 2002 Chicago International Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi
- Starring:
- Meret Becker, Oliver Korittke, (more)
A few good men are sent on a secret mission as a few good women in this comic tale of wartime espionage, loosely based upon a true story. Steven O'Rourke (Matt LeBlanc) is an American intelligence agent who, during World War II, has been assigned to obtain an Enigma machine, a special encoding-and-decoding device that Axis forces have developed to transmit their most sensitive secret information. A working Enigma machine would be invaluable to the Allied cause; O'Rourke is able to obtain a machine, but Col. Aiken (Edward Fox), a British officer whose stiff upper lip sometimes overwhelms his common sense, mistakes O'Rourke for a plunderer and destroys the previous gadget, which is hidden in a typewriter. An altercation with Aiken lands O'Rourke in military prison, but he's released in time to carry out a new plan to obtain an Enigma for Allied use. A small factory has been set up in rural Germany to build the machines, which is entirely staffed by women, so O'Rourke, communications expert Johnno (David Birkin), and veteran intelligence man Archie (James Cosmo) are to infiltrate the plant disguised as women, with Tony (Eddie Izzard), an agent who moonlights as a drag performer, giving the men a crash course in looking and acting like women. All the Queen's Men also features Nicolette Krebitz as Romy, a double agent working at the Enigma plant, and Udo Kier as Lansdorf, a Nazi general. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Matt LeBlanc, Eddie Izzard, (more)
- 2000
Opening in remote Kurdistan, Eine Hand Voll Gras introduces us to the impoverished family of 10-year-old Kendal (Arman Inci). In desperate need for cash to fund his older sister's wedding, Kendal's parents allow themselves to be persuaded by Kendal's uncle (Ercan Durmaz), who lives in Germany, to let the boy go to Germany to make some money. Upon their arrival in Hamburg, the uncle is arrested and Kendal ends up in the temporary care of Hellkamp (Oliver Korittke), a cabby with a shady past. Hellkamp drops Kendal off in the Turkish quarter but eventually has pity on him and takes him to a neighbor's apartment. Soon, a group of Central Asian drug pushers come to co-opt the boy for their own purposes, and Kendal quickly becomes adept at dealing pills for them. Six months later, he meets Hellkamp again, and, after Hellkamp's past is revealed, the fates of the man and boy become inextricably bound up in one another. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
- Starring:
- Oliver Korittke
- 2000
A gentle giant attempts to learn the elegant violence of Japan's biggest martial art in this good-natured comedy. Bruno Nestroy (Hakan Orbeyi) is a railroad worker in a small German town who tips the scales at over 400 pounds. When Bruno loses his job on his 30th birthday, he's despondent and has little idea what to do with his future. Bruno's buddy Kalle (Oliver Korittke) learns that the European Sumo Union will be holding an annual tournament in their hometown of Riesa and figures he's found the perfect hobby for Bruno. Kalle encourages Bruno to compete, and a slightly dubious Bruno signs on with trainer Akashi (Martin Seifert), who tries to mold the big guy into a competitive sumo wrestler. Along the way, Bruno gets unexpected help from a pretty dancer, Anna (Julia Richter), who has a son with a weight problem (Thomas Drechsel) and a former boyfriend with a bad temper (Tim Wilde). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Oliver Korittke
- 1999
What's a criminal to do when he has problems managing other people's money? Keek (Oliver Korittke) is an awkward sometimes-thief whose partner Kalle (Ralf Richter) is serving time in jail. Keek was put in charge of watching over Kalle's money while he is behind bars, but Keek has managed to spend most of the cash. Keek gets word that Kalle is due to hit the streets and that he expects a Mercedes and his money to be waiting for him. Since Kalle is not known for his kindness or patience, Keek panics, buying a load of counterfeit money and arranging for a Mercedes from a pair of thieves. Soon Kalle arrives, ready to kill a man who he's convinced slept with his girlfriend, while the car thieves want their Mercedes back and Keek plans a robbery to raise the money that will keep his scams quiet (and himself breathing). Bang Boom Bang was the feature-length debut from director Peter Thorwarth and received its premiere at the 1999 Munich Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Oliver Korittke, Markus Knuefken, (more)
- 1999
Noted filmmaker Roland Suso Richter directs this bittersweet exploration of life in newly reunified post-Cold War Germany. Opening in the actual Saxon town of Amerika, moving on to Berlin, and ending in America, the film follows the lives of Hans (Thomas Heinze), a bilingual German who prefers to be called Jack; Sara (Dennenesch Zoude) whose father is a black GI she never met; and Jo, a slick and savvy businessman who introduces Hans to Sara. Sara Amerika was screened at the 1999 Chicago Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dennenesch Zoude, Thomas Heinze, (more)
- 1998
- NR
The traditional (and not-so-traditional) mating dances of young people in Munich are examined for comic effect in the film Das Merkwuerdige Verhalten Geschlectsreifer Grossstaedter Zur Paarungzeist/Love Scenes From Planet Earth. Charly (Christoph Waltz) is a writer who is lonely and depressed, so one day he "borrows" his publisher's new car and soon attracts the attention of two women, Hilde (Michaela May) and Cornelia (Gudrun Landgrebe). Meanwhile, Charly's former significant other, Manuela (Ann-Kathrin Kramer), is interested in Sven (Heio Von Stetten), whom she met at a mall while he was taking the baby for a stroll. Except that it's not Sven's baby, but Manuela's; while she had given the tyke to her friend Birgit (Isabella Parkinson) to baby-sit for the day, Birgit wanted to spend the day at the gym owned by Jimmy (Oliver Korittke), whom she recently met at a dance party. However, if Birgit is looking for love, Jimmy is the wrong place to look for it; Jimmy is gay, and was at the party mainly because he had his eyes on the host, Peter (Markus Knuefken). This low-key comedy of romantic errors, the feature directorial debut of Marc Rothemund, was a major success in Germany, where it was the second highest grossing domestic release of 1998. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Christoph Waltz, Ann-Kathrin Kramer, (more)
