Barbara Rudnik Movies
- 2008
A womanizing, muckraking Berlin journalist meets his match in the unlikely form of a children's day care owner in director/star Til Schweiger's breezy romantic comedy. Ludo (Schweiger) and his photographer Moritz (Matthias Schweighoefer) cover the Berlin celebrity circuit with a flair that's truly all their own, but a bad night reporting on a high-profile engagement party ends in the devil-may-care reporter sentenced to 300 hours of community service at a local day care center run by his former classmate Anna (Nora Tschirner). Klutzy former geek Anna doesn't care too much for Ludo due to fact that he once humiliated her back when the pair were classmates, but Ludo was so busy impressing girls that he barely even remembers the incident. Now it's Anna's chance to get a little revenge, and she wastes no time in giving Ludo the toughest assignments that she can dream up. But later, when Anna notices that there may be more to Ludo that ego and conquest, this mismatched pair begins to grow closer than either could one of them could have ever anticipated. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Til Schweiger, Nora Tschirner, (more)
- 2005
Germany is throwing its biggest party of the year, but some of the folks in attendance don't feel much like celebrating in this comedy-drama from writer and director Johannes Brunner. It's the final day of Munich's annual Oktoberfest, and while most of the folks on hand are having a beer-fueled blast, that isn't quite the case for everyone. College professor Richard (Peter Lohmeyer) is trying to show his kids Jenny (Samira Bedewitz) and Marc (Rick Nadler) a good time, but they're still upset over the fact he's left their mother and is sleeping with one of his students. Birgit (Barbara Rudnik), a waitress, has grown tired of her husband Max (August Schmolzer), a chronically unfaithful musician, through she can't decide if she should leave him. A restless teenage girl (Anna Bruggemann) falls for a boy in a wheelchair (Christoph Luser) until she discovers he has no trouble walking. The girl's mother, Maria (Hildegard Kuhlenberg), has been supporting the family by operating a haunted house attraction near the Oktoberfest, but she's not sure what to do when she learns she's lost her lease. And a couple from Japan (Gen Seto and Nahoko Fort-Nishigami) wonders if Munich was such a good idea for their honeymoon after a long day of drinking. Oktoberfest was shot on location in Munich during the 2005 celebration of the titular festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Rudnik, Peter Lohmeyer, (more)
- 2002
Newly single schoolteacher Hanna Solinger (Barbara Rudnik) has just relocated with her two children from Greece to the Munich suburb she grew up in order to live with her mother and work within the city's school system. With her work assignment in one of the most notorious ghetto schools in the inner city, Hanna decides on her first day that the environment is too rough for her liking and resigns her position. Meanwhile, two trouble-raising brothers, Christos (Ioannis Tsialas) and Maikis (Toni Osmani), find themselves in serious trouble when the younger Maikis is expelled and Christos is identified as the thief who robbed Hanna only the day before. In a deal made with the principal, Maikis will be readmitted to school only if Christos can convince the now ex-new teacher to remain on staff. Also aiding in the effort to change Hanna's mind is social worker Xaver (Gunther Maria Halmer), who runs a special program for at-risk youth that utilizes a combination of music, dance, and mentoring to help get kids off the streets. Hanna reluctantly agrees to learn about Xaver's creative teaching methods, paving the way for the boys' re-admittance to school. Christos and Maikis begin to actually succeed in their studies, until one of Christos' other previous victims positively identifies him, placing the youth in serious danger of going to jail. ~ Ryan Shriver, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ioannis Tsialas, Toni Osmani, (more)
- 2001
After burning his bridges as a detective, a man tries to redeem himself driving an ambulance in this dark comedy from Austria. Brenner (Josef Hader) was once a police detective, but after the local chief of police discovered Brenner was having an affair with his wife, he found himself off the force and in need of a steady job. Despite Brenner's appetite for booze and drugs, he soon finds work as a driver for an ambulance company, where it becomes obvious that he's not that different than his colleagues -- a rough and rowdy bunch who are struggling to outwit another local ambulance service and who make up in daring what they sometimes lack in civility and common sense. When a nurse well known to the drivers is brutally murdered, Brenner decides to put his experience as a detective to work, and with the help of his girlfriend Berti (Simon Schwarz) and fellow driver (and onetime schoolmate) Klara (Barbara Rudnik), Brenner sets out to track down the killer. Komm, Susser Tod is based on a novel by Wolfgang Haas, who also co-wrote the screenplay with director Wolfgang Murnberger and leading man Josef Hader. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josef Hader, Barbara Rudnik, (more)
- 2000
Thosten Schmidt directs this over-the-top Teutonic spectacular consisting of pregnant Russians, bales of cocaine and a drunken bear. Right before the big millennial new year, hefty loser Toto (Jurgen Tarrach) gets released from the joint after a three year stint for drug possession. He simply wants to get his life in order and start working in his old job as a Berlin bus driver. His recently released cellmate Frank (Dieter Landuris), however, is looking for one last score -- toting a wad of blow for hot-head drug lord Henry (Andre Hennicke) -- so he and his girlfriend Nora (Nadja Uhl) can live the big life. Little does Frank know, but a crippled DJ named Commander Zippo (Hannes Jaencike) is actively wooing Nora on his radio show and voyeuristically spying on her from a secret window in his apartment. Meanwhile, a pregnant, desperately poor Russian woman, Natalia (Tamara Simunovic), throws herself in front of Toto's bus. In his attempt to avoiding flattening her, he manages to kill Henry's drug courier (Royal Atakpa). With an injured though beautiful woman, a corpse, and ten kilos of snow on his bus, he gets talked into holding the stash for ransom by Natalia, who hopes to earn enough to bankroll her child's life. Somewhere in all this wackiness, a black bear gets released from the zoo by an animal rights activist, gets drunk, boards the bus and causes one of those impressive movie accidents where no one gets hurt. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jürgen Tarrach, Tamara Simunovic, (more)
- 1998
In this German comedy-drama, adapted from a Dietrich Schwanitz novel, Hamburg sociology professor Hanno Hackmann (Heiner Lauterbach) pleases his social-climbing wife Gabrielle (Sibylle Canonica) when he reveals he intends to compete against corrupt Schacht (Rudolf Kowalski) for position of university president. But what about his affair with drama student Babsi (Sandra Speichert)? Babsi, portraying a rape victim in a college play, is dropped from the cast, has a breakdown, and lands in a psych ward. This chain of events prompts rumors she was sexually harassed and innocent Hackmann is the suspect. Naturally, Schacht latches onto the rumor in order to crush his opponent prior to the university president election. Shown at the 1998 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Heiner Lauterbach, Axel Milberg, (more)
- 1998
A burnt-out Berlin cop investigating his 652nd case slowly loses the ability to discern the differences between the grim realities of the job and a decaying personal life as his mental instability grows progressively worse. His latest case is particularly nasty and puzzling, but Detective Bernie Kominka (Gotz George) finds himself strangely pleased, for it distracts him from his tumultuous home life wherein his wife grows fussy and distant, and his nearly lunatic son proclaims his undying hatred for him. The mystery involves the apparently sexually-motivated mutilation, beating death, and robbery of a young man. During his initial investigation of the crime scene, Kominka notes a yellow umbrella that is surreptitiously picked up by a young woman. While vainly searching for clues, Kominka's marriage finally crumbles, but not before he is suspended by his boss/brother-in-law Hecht (Christian Redl) during a heated argument. With no work and no family, Kominka, who seems to be teetering on the brink of a breakdown without realizing it himself, starts looking for the woman and the missing umbrella. During his search, he learns that the victim's ex-wife has become a suspect and that the deceased had been selling his son to pedophiles. Kominka finds the woman, Anna Weller (Corinna Harfouch) soon enough. A recent divorcée, she is as vulnerable and fragile as he is. Without identifying himself as a cop, Kominka picks Anna up at a singles bar and the two embark upon a decidedly sexual and unhealthy relationship that only worsens the situation. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Götz George, Corinna Harfouch, (more)
- 1996
This taut, well-wrought German drama was originally made for television in 1995 but was such a critical success that it was released in theaters the following year. It is the gripping story of a young journalist who begins reporting on a series of prostitute murders. Ina Littmann's prime suspect is author Henry Kupfer who was recently released from prison after allegedly murdering a string of hookers. His newest book is on that subject. As her suspicions mount, Ina begins gathering evidence but she does not learn the truth until she interviews Kupfer live on television. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1995
German politics and filmmaking are parodied in this comedic mystery that centers on a line-up of odd-balls, each suspected of killing a politician, as they explain their different motives for committing the crime. It is up to the viewer to decide which one of them committed the crime (the filmmaker never does tell who did it, so it could provide an interesting topic for discussion after the picture ends. Also never shown is the industrialist they killed). Among the suspects are a bungling terrorist who cannot prove the existence of her radical group and a former director of East German state films who currently makes his living editing video clips for a dating service. During the "interviews," characters will periodically stop to argue with director Hans-Christian Blumenberg. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1989
In the Frame was first shown as a 2-hour entry in the syndicated TV anthology The Mystery Wheel of Adventure. The film was one of three mysteries based on the works of author Dick Francis. Ian McShane stars as Francis' most popular character, British Jockey Club investigator David Cleveland. Here, Cleveland comes to the aid of an old friend accused of stealing fine art and finer wine. After its syndicated run in 1989, In the Frame was broadcast over the Disney Channel pay-cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1987
In this comedy, Peter Benjamin (Klaus Wennemann) is fairly contented with life, though he is tired of his job on-camera as a talk-show host. Then one day, he receives an inheritance he couldn't have imagined: a magical cap that makes him invisible when he puts it on. What he sees taking place among his family and friends shocks him Though the unimaginative man attempts to confront his misbehaving fellows about their deeds and attitudes, this film's short run in movie theaters is evidence that these confrontations failed to provoke much mirth. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Klaus Wennemann, Barbara Rudnik, (more)
- 1986
This original detective story has songs that refer to the unfolding plot combined with a cloak-and-dagger murder mystery that would feel at home in Sam Spade's office. When Max Muller (Christian Schmidt) starts to look for the missing fiance of the beautiful Bettina (Barbara Rudnik), his daily paper reports that Bettina has been killed. Now committed to the case, Max and his pal Andy (Andreas Vitasek) dig into the mystery of the missing boyfriend only to discover that the Mafia wants them out of it. With plot twists and turns in abundance, several corpses are left in the investigation's wake before the case is solved. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christian Schmidt, Andreas Vitasek, (more)
- 1986
In this drama set in the south of France during World War II, the realities of war lose out to a melodramatic rendering of the fortunes of Lise, a gorgeous German Jewess (Barbara Rudnik). Lise escapes certain death in Nazi Germany by making her way to the south of France, only to be threatened once again when the Nazis occupy the area in 1942. Her manager sets her up in a small town where her accent, clothes and mannerisms cause the townspeople to suspect she's a German spy. If only she were aware enough not to leave little clues indicating who she is, and if she hadn't had that affair with a teen-ager, and if she would not say no to the wrong lover, maybe her future would look a little less grim. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Rudnik, Andréa Ferréol, (more)
- 1986
This somber drama finds Norbert (Zacharias Preen) as a bank trainee who takes little pleasure in life except movies from the 1950s. He lives with his mother (Karin Baal) and resents her for ending the relationship with the father he has never met. Depressed and alienated, he wanders the streets of Berlin and imagines that strange men in their late 30s may in fact be his father. Norbert engages in a brief love affair with Gabriele (Barbara Rudnik), a woman on the run who is somewhat older than him. He continues to descend into a tragic morass of mental illness, his life paralleling the bleak themes of the films he loves. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Rudnik, Karin Baal, (more)
- 1985
In this entertaining light comedy, Hildi (Karina Fallenstein) is a good-hearted but also exploitative 18-year-old, with her punk hairstyle looking like it came out of a Kansas tornado on the losing side. She lives with two very casual friends in a small apartment and cribs money off anyone willing to still help her out. Her heart belongs to a punk rocker whom she fervently hopes will top the charts one day, even though their affair has ended. Unfortunately for Hildi's lifestyle, their affair may have left her with more than warm memories -- though she is certain to be undaunted and ultimately responsible, come what may.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Karina Fallenstein, Peter E. Funck, (more)
- 1984
In this strangely aloof teen crime drama, three high school buddies share a passion for motorbikes. They work at the same auto repair shop, and when their boss dies and they get shafted with a phony car deal, they decide on a very dangerous way of paying back their debt. Albi (Max Wigger), Franz (Dietmar Bär), and Tayfun (Tayfun Bademosy) live for motorbikes, spending every spare pfennige on their passion, even setting aside very little time or money for women. All three have low-level mechanics jobs at a grimy auto shop, and when their boss dies from a heart attack, they are left with the shop to manage. Cheated in a car-deal scam, they suddenly find themselves burdened with a large debt to a mobster and either they pay it off or lose their kneecaps. Driven by a desire to keep their body parts intact, they begin to fake accidents with unsuspecting motorists and then talk their victims into paying up front, without calling the police or the insurance company. Their scheme is going well until one day they are looking at a major coup that involves a fatal, head-on crash -- a plan that brings their decision about how to continue surviving to a head. Director Dominik Graf has captured the teens' world well, and the action scenes and acting are good, yet the three teens remain distanced as human beings. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dietmar Bar, Tayfun Bademsoy, (more)
- 1984
In this curiously irresolute drama, Gabriele (Barbara Rudnik) is a young woman who lives at home in her wealthy parents' apartment, but dreams of returning to Australia to join her Aussie boyfriend. He keeps in touch by mailing her taped messages and a video of their good times together on the beach. She, in turn, is studying marine biology and working at a peep show at night so she can save some money to join him. Her nighttime job introduces new people into her life -- everyone from her manager who lusts after her, to the women who work in the peep shows, and the taxi driver who takes her to work each night. An uneasy sense of foreboding slowly takes over, raising the question of whether she may finally return to Australia or not. All this might be more compelling if the acting were less stylized and the script a little more convincing. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Rudnik
- 1984
Morgen Grauen is a sci-fi action film set in an indeterminate future, when citizens above the age of 15 have to use an "energy chip" to buy anything -- the catch is that they cannot use the chip for self-aggrandizement or an execution squad comes after them. When Sarah gets on the list of a death squad, Len, one of the executioners, likes her too much to carry out his orders, while Jacob, a particularly brutal killer, has no problem with killing anyone. Soon Len has teamed up with Sarah, and both are chased by Jacob toward an exciting climax to the fast-paced action that dominates throughout the film. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Albert Fortell, Hannelore Elsner, (more)
- 1981
Annie (Barbara Rudnik) takes tickets at a movie theater and fantasizes so intensely about the stories that flit across the silver screen that real life pales alongside the reel life she embellishes with her imagination. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Rudnik
