FILM REVIEWS

SCHRAMM

Directed by Jorg Buttgereit, 1994
Starring Florian Koerner von Gustorf, Monkia M., Micha Brendel, Carolina Harnisch
Produced by Manfred O. Jelinski
Written by Jorg Buttgereit and Franz Rodenkirchen

Reviewed by Vlad Krystiansn, 2-21-03
Rating: 3 Skulls

Bible-thumpers getting their heads smashed in, date rape, paint, a sexy whore in bondage, sex with a cheap inflatable torso, plenty of full frontal male nudity, cock torture with nails, a decrepit apartment building with ugly wall paper, plenty of blood, creepy hallucinations, and a seemingly all around quiet, nice guy are what Jorg Buttgereit's Schramm is all about. Did I give too much away? Hell no. You've got to see this film.

Schramm follows the fleeting, disjointed memories of the previous few days that flow through Lothar 'Lipstick Killer' Shramm's (played wonderfully by Florian Koerner von Gustorf) fractured skull (to go along with an already fractured mind) as he lies dying in a pool of blood on his kitchen floor. At first, the sequences of images are hard to follow, but as time goes on, you start to figure out all that is going on. The editing of this film is phenomenal. You will definitely feel as though you're inside Schramm?s head from beginning to end. There is some great camera movement as well. Definitely some tilting that I haven't really seen done before.

For fans of NEKRomantik, Schramm needs to be viewed with different expectations, as it is quite a change from the 'shock-o-rama' of the former. This film is more in the line of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and the recent indie film, Dahmer. If you like these films, definitely check this one out. The DVD has some great behind-the-scenes footage and a couple of early shorts created by Buttgereit.

Overall rating is 3 skulls.