TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film

Protraph Lack of good storyline.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

l_rawjalaurence I am surprised that so many other reviewers have taken exception to HÖNIG IM KOPF. The visual style of director/ star Til Schweiger takes a bit of getting used to (with fast intercuts between the characters, analogous to a pop video), but the action remains firmly protagonist-focused, especially on the relationship between Alzheimer's victim Amandus (Dieter Hallervorden) and his granddaughter Tilda (Emma Schweiger). The two of them remain close through thick and thin, even when Amandus appears to be losing his mind for good.The subject-matter is difficult to dramatize, as anyone who has experienced the trauma of coping with an Alzheimer's victim will testify. Amandus means well, but it's clear that he cannot cope on his own; he has lost his sense of direction, and has little or no connection to the outside world. Neither Tilda's father Niko (Til Schweiger) nor her mother Sarah (Jeanette Hain) can really understand the nature of Amandus's condition, and hence it's hardly surprising that Sarah should frequently lose her temper on seeing the carnage that her father-in-law has caused.The story takes a sentimental twist in the second half as Tilda and Amandus embark on an ambitious journey to Venice, where Amandus enjoyed his happiest days. Some of the plot-lines are highly implausible, especially in the way others treat Amandus, despite his medical condition. But perhaps that doesn't matter; we rejoice in the fact that the old man has a renewed purpose in life, which restores at least some of his connection to the outside world.Shot throughout in bright colors, with a particular focus on the glorious landscapes of Austria, Germany, and Venice, HÖNIG IM KOPF has a feel-good ending in which Tilda's parents come to understand the true purpose of their lives, while Tilda (who also narrates the tale) realizes that her bond with Amandus will survive, even after his passing.

Ehrgeiz The best about this German movie who was one of the biggest hits in 2014 are some of the performances. I always thought Hallervorden to be a good actor even in his often unfunny 70ies and 80ies comedies. Jeanette Hain is also good as the antagonist. Schweiger himself has made worse and better movies in the past. In the last years he became notorious for putting his friends and kids in his movies. Same here, but his daughter Emma is at least not as annoying as her elder sister Luna who also gets shoehorned in many of his movies. First off, the movie about a little girl and her grandfather, who has got Alzheimer disease, is just a bit too long. I think this movie could easily be 30 minutes shorter. In my opinion the movie shows quite good what Alzheimer does despite it is not in all details realistic. But Schweiger again ruins the portrayal of his main character by his crude style of humour. Here, for example, the main character Armandus is fond of grabbing tits or pees in the fridge. So you get wrongly the impression this may have not been a good man before he became demented.

kosmasp That's his character might not remember it. Dieter (or Didi as he's known in Germany) Hallervorden is a talented actor and he pulls off this role, which is a touch one to pull off. Is it unrealistic and does the movie draw too many cheap jokes? Yes it does, but with Hallervorden in the middle of it, acting his way out, even when you think it's impossible to salvage anything from what is happening, you can forgive such things.The girl (daughter of Schweiger) is better in this, than she was in previous roles she got through her father. That doesn't mean she evolved into an actress yet, but let's give her the benefit of doubt and maybe she'll manage (some would argue, that it won't be hard to overshadow any "acting talent" her father has, but that's a different story). If you don't mind how over the top this is and how silly most of it is, it actually kind of works (which surprised me a little bit)

feyza-balak I would like to talk about two characters and the way their attitude is being dangerously idealized in the movie:First of all, Tilda, the small child almost takes over the responsibility of her parents, taking her grandfather to a trip abroad. She witnesses how her grandpa slowly loses the capability of leading his own life and this is simply not something that a child can handle psychologically. For a child to carry such parental responsibilities is being referred to as a severe trauma in psychology and it shouldn't be idealized in a movie. Moreover, when she takes off with her grandpa, interestingly no one ever wonders where she may be and what may happen to them. So instead of being deeply worried for her, Niko and Sarah brush up their sex life. Really?!Secondly, Sarah, Niko's wife is portrayed as a very unpleasant character and in the movie, this is tied to the fact that she doesn't want her husband's father to live with them. At the end, where the character transforms into an ideal (!) woman, she quits her job to look after Amandus and to spend more time with her daughter. This is nothing but a gender stereotype being reinforced in a very emotionally abusive manner. Again, such experiences have caused and are causing many women in the world to have traumatic experiences when it comes to having a family and wanting to realize themselves. I was very disappointed to see so many gender stereotypes being reinforced in the movie. The people of this world have endured enough traumas and they should not be idealized in any way, let alone in a movie by Til Schweiger that is guaranteed to reach millions of people.