KEINOHRHASEN - MOVIE [DVD] [2007]

Keinohrhasen is a rare beast, a really funny German RomCom. Starring Til Schweiger who does not have to stretch too far in his role as large-ego'd papparazo Ludo, Keinohrhasen conforms to many of the genre types but what makes it stand out compared to many others is the witty dialogue. Part of the humour is thanks to Matthias Schweighöfer who plays Ludo's protege Moritz as a young and eager participant with a range of comedic facial expressions. The romance side is a bit less excellent with the main pair not being especially endearing but watching Ludo struggle with foreign language (Dutch) instructions is hilarious.As with several recent Til Schweiger films, Keinohrhasen is a Til Schweiger vehicle. Schweiger is lead character, director, and producer. What that means in practice is this is a very male RomCom, Ludo is very handsome and very successful with women despite or perhaps because of being an utter jerk. He is made into a better person by meeting nerdy Kindergarten teacher Anna played by Norma Tschirmer. Ludo is arrogant but good looking. Anna is uptight but presumably good hearted. She doesn't really show that good heart through much of the film which is Keinohrhasen's main weakness. There isn't really any reason why Ludo would want to be with Anna. It is just the right thing for the alpha male to do in a RomCom, settling down with an average woman.Prior to meeting Anna, Ludo is a lad. He jokes around with Moritz, making a particular fool of himself by ilterally crashing into Wladimir Klitschko's wedding. That part of the film is great fun, Schweiger and Schweighöfer clown around bantering with each other and with passers-by using the expletive loaded vernacular common in Germany. The early going also introduces the audience to some of Ludo's many conquests who he has clearly charmed and then discarded. The self-affirming philosophy of the playa is firmly in evidence and delivered with a boyish sense of humour.A particularly notable scene sees Ludo and Moritz interviewing German actor Jürgen Vogel. Vogel is known for being a bit odd looking so the scene works fabulously with Vogel wearing a perma-tan, a blond wig, and bleached teeth. The payoff for that scene later on is hidden in the background so the irony of it is somewhat lost but on face value it is laugh out loud funny.Another part of the papparazi storyilne sees Ludo and Moritz stoop to exploitative tabloid journalism when interviewing a pair of Bavarian folk musicians. That the woman in the pair hates her faux-rural character is brilliant when set against the man speaking in a heavy and hard to follow Bavarian accent.When things take a turn for the worse, Ludo is forced to perform community service. It happens to be at a Kindergarten run by Anna. The pair instantly dislike one another, trading barbs. Anna does her best to make sure Ludo fails. It is at times funny but there is an utter lack of chemistry between the two. Anna is incredibly dowdy but underneath she's painfully skinny with a spiteful personality. Somehow Anna is the woman Ludo needs in his life but as she's a bit erratic in her mannerisms and has few redeeming qualities it is never clear why this is a perfect match.The romance becomes a bit silly when it crosses into Ludo's celebrity world and the humour becomes a little less sophisticated. Perhaps Til Schweiger needs someone to tell him when he's slightly off the mark as Keinohrhasen is really excellent in the main.The best moment of the film is a face-to-face discussion between Ludo and a child called Cheyenne-Blue. The name is deliberately silly and pokes fun at the way actors name their children. Cheyenne-Blue is of course Til Schweiger's daughter Emma Tiger Schweiger. Despite this being a blatant Schweiger-fest, it is a charming interaction bewteen father and daughter.The minor characters of Keinohrhasen do not take up all that much screen time. Rick Kavanian is funny as the abusive tabloid editor. Barbara Rudnik is a bit low-key as Ludo's sister. Alwara Höfels could have deserved more screen time as Anna's naughty friend Miriam. The seeds of a relationship between Miriam and Moritz looked like fun and could have been more of the story.The Keinohrhasen itself is a bit silly, it is a proper used to show Ludo really cares for Anna but does not seem to be enough to make it the title feature.Accompanying the visuals is a painfully cool soundtrack. It is so cool, the DVD comes with the playlist and the album has sold well. Few of the songs themselves are overly memorable but what the soundtrack does do is make the film feel contemporary.The DVD Extras are not all that enlightening. The first featurette serves more as a marketing tool than offering insight. The second is outtakes, many of which seem to be because Matthias Schweighöfer clearly had a lot of fun making the film. An alternative ending does not seem to be very alternate to the original ending. There are a few deleted scenes and a commentary.Subtitling in the main is pretty good, using the right kinds of slang. Where the translation tends to fall away a bit is with cultural references. Nordsee just doesn't translate as Fish and Chips because the cultural connotations between the two are different. Still, it is a pretty good set of subtitles in English.German cinema has not dominated the world RomCom market. Keinohrhasen though is one of the better offerings because it is so funny. The romance is not sparkling but the dialogue and wit certainly is. For a decent Germanic laugh with a sprinkle of romance involved, Keinohrhasen does a decent job.

It is easy to see how this film had such success at the German box office. Starring a very easy-on-the eye TIl Schweiger, this film had me chuckling all the way through despite the somewhat predictable happy ending to the love story. Definitely one to watch.And well done to Amazon for actually sending me the right film this time!

A fun romantic comedy. Til Schweiger shines as director, actor and co-writer and his youngest daughter makes her debut as Cheyenne Blue. If you enjoy a good chick-flick, this movie is for you.

A very enjoyable film! I'm slightly puzzled, however, as to why the English title is given as "Rabbit without Ears" as opposed to "Hare with no Ears" which seems to me to be more accurate.

I enjoy German drama and I was intrigued by the idea of a German rom-com, but I was probably wrong for expecting something more than the usual uninspiring formula. A womanising, morally-deficient paparazzo meets a geeky nice girl who works with small children - can you guess what happens next? But it was around the point where the script starts reeling out the 'men are like THIS and women are like THAT' stereotypes that I started wondering just which decade actor, director and writer Til Schweiger was living in when he thought up this drivel.To be fair, it does have its funny moments, but overall it was an unoriginal, predictable take on the genre. If you like Richard Curtis films you'll probably love it.

A really great feel good film.

Wunderbar

Excellent movie and I don't speak any German. Much better than any Holywood based equivelent.I was a little apprehensive as I don't generally watch non-english language movies, but this movie exceeded my expectations.I would recommend it to anyone that wants a good laugh - the language barrier doesn't get in the way. Down to earth humour but still true to life.The delivery and service received from the vendor was excellent also.