Frank Giering Movies

Two funnymen find themselves confronting tragedy just as they're poised to enjoy a career triumph in this comedy-drama. Paul (Steffan Wink) and Alex (Frank Giering) are two friends who are struggling stand-up comics; Paul was born with a surplus of confidence and a deficiency in self-control (especially when it comes to women), while Alex is the archetypal nice guy who finishes last. A nationwide competition for young comics is announced, and both Paul and Alex make it into the finals; one of Paul's greatest dreams is to work with comedy legend Rob Patterson (Simon Prescott), and winning would make it a reality. When Alex discovers he's contracted cancer and has only a short time to live, he puts his own ambitions on hold to help Paul win, but it takes Paul a while to realize just what Alex's sacrifice truly means. Der Himmel Kann Warten received its American premiere at the 2001 Cinequest San Jose Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Mark, who is 19, coping with the recent death of his parents, and paralyzed from the waist down, is sent to a center for the mentally handicapped. Placed there because no space is available at a more appropriate clinic, the former athlete is on the verge of suicide when Lisa, a new therapist, intervenes and promises to find a way to get Mark to the summit of one of the Alps he used to climb. Organizing a motley crew of climbers that includes Mark, herself, two mentally handicapped patients, and three juvenile delinquents, Lisa struggles to make it to the top with her difficult charges. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi

In the port town of Hamburg, Germany, Floyd (Frank Giering) disappoints his sanctimonious boss by announcing that he's shipping out to South Africa and Singapore now that his two-year probation for an unspecified juvenile offense has been completed. When he shares the news with his devoted friends Chubby (Antoine Monot Jr.), a mechanic, and Ricco (Florian Lukas), a fast-food cook and would-be b-boy, they can't comprehend their thoughtful friend's willingness to trade camaraderie for a wider view of the world. Overcoming their anger and bewilderment, the guys decide to spend one last night with Floyd, but the problem, as always, is how to find some fun. A succession of fast-food restaurants, parking garages, and local watering holes chronicles the inherent boredom of life in the provinces. But a run-in with a convention of dragster-racing Elvis impersonators sends the boys and their friend Telsa Julia Hummer on a series of adventures that veers from the farcical to the almost-tragic. Absolute Giganten was screened at the 1999 Flanders Film Festival and thereafter received limited international distribution. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

In this exploration of our violent society, writer and director Michael Haneke takes a disturbing look at how depictions of violence at once reflect and shape our culture. A well-to-do German family -- father Georg (Ulrich Mühe), mother Anna (Susanne Lothar), and son Georgie (Stefan Clapczynski) -- are settling in for the weekend at their vacation retreat near the lake. While Georg and his son head out for some sailing, a courteous young gentleman named Peter (Frank Giering) appears at the door, asking if he can borrow some eggs. When he breaks them, Anna offers him some more, but the conversation soon takes an odd turn; Peter goes from pleasant to sniveling to confrontational, and he's soon joined by his friend Paul (Arno Frisch). When Georg returns, he demands that Paul and Peter leave, but the two strangers refuse; Paul and Peter react with violence against Georg and his family, and they soon have the family tied up and begin torturing them. Peter and Paul occasionally refer to the camera in a manner recalling Bertolt Brecht, and near the end of the film, they even demand the opportunity to replay a scene so that they may mete out more punishment against their victims. The score includes classical selections by Mozart and Handel as well as performances by avant-garde composer John Zorn. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi