october-2012

WHY SO SERIOUS?
Moritz Bleibtreu is about to blow his image as Germany’s favourite screen
nice guy. His latest fi lm, action thriller Schutzengel (Guardian Angel), throws
the spotlight on a rarely discussed issue: German veterans of modern wars
Bleibtreu brilliert in der
tiefgehenden Rolle eines
deutschen Soldaten
Bleibtreu brings
emotional depth to his
portrayal of a disabled
former soldier in
Schutzengel
German cinema-goers
love Moritz Bleibtreu.
Ever since Run Lola Run
back in 1998 he has been a
regular face on the German fi lm
scene, playing humorous, niceguy
roles with charismatic,
down-to-earth charm. As he
says himself, he’s not really your
typical bad guy. So when he does
play a villain, he’s all the more
compelling: he was mesmerising
as 70s terrorist Andreas Baader
in 2008’s The Baader Meinhof
Complex and won a similar part
in Spielberg’s Munich (2005).
His latest performance in Til
Schweiger’s Schutzengel
(currently on general release in
Germany) will only add to his
reputation for darker roles. The
movie addresses modern
Germany’s attitude to war.
Schweiger – as usual taking the
roles of producer, director and
star – plays a retired Special
Forces soldier, charged with the
protection of an orphan (played
by Schweiger’s daughter, Luna)
who’s witnessed a murder. The
story may not be entirely
original, but the fi lm focuses on
a subject that is rarely discussed
in the German media: the fact
that the country’s soldiers are
currently at war in Afghanistan.
It’s brought to the fore by
Bleibtreu’s character, former
soldier and amputee Rudi.
M O R I T Z B L E I B T R E U
Talking in his adopted city of
Hamburg, Bleibtreu stubs out a
cigarette and leans back in his
chair: ‘War isn’t exactly talked
about much in Germany, for
obvious reasons. We tend to
associate the word “veteran” fi rst
and foremost with America.’ It’s
this German discomfort at their
country being ‘at war’ that the
fi lm broaches. When Til
Schweiger’s character talks
about ‘the war in Afghanistan’,
GW—83