Ulrike Kriener Movies

A shared love of fish leads to a variety of romantic predicaments in this offbeat comedy from writer and director Doris Dörrie. Otto (Christian Ulmen) and Leo (Simon Verhoeven) are two men from Germany who have launched a successful business in which they import koi, the beautiful Japanese fish, for collectors in their native land. While on a business trip to Japan, Otto and Leo meet Ida (Alexandra Maria Lara), a German tourist who is studying fashion design. Ida begins traveling with the two men, and surprisingly develops an infatuation with the rumpled Otto instead of the handsome Leo. When Ida discovers she's pregnant with Otto's child, the two marry, and upon their return to Germany, Ida attempts to join in the business by creating a line of scarves decorated with koi patterns. However, the honeymoon proves short-lived, and Ida's presence creates a rift between Otto and Leo, as the latter sets up his own concern, raising koi with his new bride, Yoko (Young-Shin Kim). Meanwhile, Ida's desire to make good in the business begins to irritate Otto when she becomes chummy with the wife of his most important investor; as he grows apart from Ida, he's uncertain of what to do when Yoko boldly makes it known that she's attracted to him. Der Fischer und Seine Frau (aka The Fisherman and His Wife) received its North American premiere at the 2005 New Montreal Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Noted German filmmaker Doris Dorrie directs this understated comedy about two middle-aged brothers who go to study at a Zen monastery in Japan. The two brothers could not be more different. Uwe (Uwe Ochsenknecht) is a bored husband and kitchenware salesman, while Gustav (Gustav Peter Wohler) is a flighty feng shui consultant and Eastern religions devotee. Just as Gustav is preparing to leave for the land of the rising sun, Uwe, whose wife just dumped him, begs his brother to let him tag along. The first night in Tokyo proves to be a disaster. After a night of drinking, the pair get lost, spend the last of their cash on an ill-fated taxi ride, lose their credit cards, and end up sleeping in some boxes on the city streets. But this deprivation prepares them for the hard living of monastic life, including 4:30 a.m. wake up calls, elaborate dining rituals, long periods of silent mediation, and a punishing cleaning routine. As the days wear on, Gustav soon finds himself buckling under the strain while Uwe demonstrates himself to be much more adaptable to a monk's life. The experience eventually brings the night-and-day brothers closer together. This film was screened at the 2000 Rotterdam Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

Quite a few years ago, Isaak Kohler (Maximillian Schell) cooly walked up to a man everyone assumed was his friend and shot him dead. This took place in front of dozens of witnesses in a busy restaurant, and there was no question about his guilt. What he never revealed was his motive. He has been in prison serving a twenty year sentence ever since. Perhaps in order to ease his daughter's pain about the incident, he has hired a legal representative to arrange for him to receive a retrial. He is still unforthcoming about his reasons for committing the crime, and invites the struggling lawyer to make something up. This crime and courtroom drama is based on a novel by Friedrich Durrenmatt, whose works are highly respected within the German-speaking intellectual community but whose appeal has proved difficult to translate. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

This German drama is set in the rural town of Coburg where a 20-year old insurance-company worker secretly manipulates the system to help those in danger of losing their benefits. When not working, the fellow enjoys hang-gliding and dreams of soaring off Bolivia's Mount Palomani to set a world record by gliding all the way across the jungle to Ixiamas. When others learn of his dream, they begin raising money to help him live out his daring dream. Once they do, the fellow is left with no choice but to try it. Will he succeed? ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The men in The Men are stuffy ad exec Heiner Lauterbach and nonconformist artist Uwe Oschsenknecht. Both are amorously involved with lovely Ulrike Kleiner: Lauterbach is her husband, Oschsenknecht her new lover. Deducing that Ulrike is attracted to Oschsenknecht's Bohemian lifestyle, Lauterbach plots to transform the artist into a rock-ribbed conservative. A dash of gratuitous slapstick hurts the farcical proceedings not one whit. Originally titled Manner, The Men was made on a shoestring for German television, then released as a theatrical feature, making a tidy sum in the process. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An older actor in the middle of a Strindberg play decides that his life is about as sterile as the character he is portraying, and he just walks out of the theater, goes home to his daughter, and tells her to pack up some things -- they are taking off in the car. Where? Destination unknown, but "maybe" Monte Carlo-- why not take an additional gamble? As the father and daughter become reacquainted on their journey, he is about ready to turn back and go home when she insists that they continue onward. They soon find that Monte Carlo may not be such an easy destination after all when they take their ailing car into a shop and are charged nearly as much for the tune-up as the cost of the car itself. Undaunted, they are not willing to give up their intention of getting to Monte Carlo, no matter what. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide