Boxoffice-July.1997

AA
R/iv/\inrir'i7
"
. „
„
"
Maybe Not" is currently the second most popular
German film of the past 16 years, having
earned the Golden Screen with Star award (a
distinction rarely achieved) for amassing more
than six million domestic admissions (to be
exact, "Maybe, Maybe Not" pulled in
6,510,213 moviegoers during its first run).
That hit catapulted Schweiger into the high-
GERMAN PRODUCTION'S SECOND COMING
If current trends continue, 1997 should be a big yearfor Germanproduced
cinema at the German boxoffice. In addition to the numerous
smaller domestic films which will be in play, here are a
few of the higher-profile features that are either currently in the
editing room or
else in production
forprospective release
this year (all
release dates are
tentative):
A CO-VENTURE ADVENTURE: Wolfgang Braun ofBVI Germany (I.) says the Disney subsidiary took a chance on firsttime
director Thomas Jahn (r.) because the studio wanted "to offer the German audience a new domestic type of film.
est echelons of the country's talent. For ^ . . „• .,
i ,
Thomas Jahn, meeting Schweiger was Gamier starrmg Katja Riemann, Nicolette Krebitz,
therefore
a moment of destiny. Jahn is
a self-described
movie freak: "When I was 1 2 or so, all
I did was go to the movies," he says, "or watch
them on TV. I ingested everything I could get
my hands on—classics from Howard Hawks
or John FonJ, American cult movies like 'Midnight
Run,' action flicks, just about everything."
Tlie reference to "Midnight Run"—another
odd-couple road movie—is no coincidence. In
Jahn's film, "Knockin' on Heaven's Door,"
Schweiger's character is named Martin Brest,
after "Midnight Run's" U.S. director. His
partner's character is named after Rudolph
Wurlitzer, the screenwriter for Sam
Peckinpah's cult western "Pat Garrett and
Billy the Kid." And it's the Bob Dylan tune
used as the musical motif in "Pat Garrett" that
eventually gave Jahn's breakthrough feature
its title: "Knockin' on Heaven's Door."
So when Jahn, who was moonlighting at
that time as a taxi driver, saw Schweiger leafing
through film books, he had to go up and
talk with him. They discussed "Der bewegte
Mann," Schweiger's growing interest in creating
and producing his own films, and Jahn's
stash of unrealized screenplays sitting in his
closet One thing led to another, and within a
week of this initial meeting Schweiger's mailbox
was busting at the seams:-Jahn had sent
him a potpourri of possible film ideas. In that
stack of scripts was a first draft of "Knockin'
on Heaven's Doot."
"What bothers me /.? that death is such an
uncomfortable way to live.
—from "Knockin ' on Heaven 's Door"
Schweiger was automatically drawn to the
story and knew he wanted to film it. He
and Jahn worked on the script for about
• Buena Vista International
Germany
is the number one
major involved in
domestic production,
with a handful
of German co-pro-
comedy about
ductions, including:
"Bandits" is a musical
an all-girl prison
band from Katja von
asmin Tabatabai and
Hannes Jaen-nicke. (German release date: July 3j;
"Hunger: To Yearn for Love," a dramatic love story about the effects that
bulimia can have on one's life, is Dana Vavrova's directorial debut and
stars Catherine Flemming, Kai Wiesinger and Christiane Horbiger. The
film is produced together with Perathon Film, the production company of
German filmmaker Joseph Vilsmaier (Vavrova's husband). (Sept. 4);
"2 Frauen, 2 Manner" ("Two Women, Two Men"), a comedy about
infidelity by Vivian Naefe from Olga Film, stars Heino Firch, Aglaia
Szyszkowitz and Gedeon Burkhard. (Oct. 16);
"Widows" stars Uwe Ochsenknecht, Heino Firch, Huub Stapel, Thomas
Heinze and Eva Mattes. Sherry Hermann is at the helm. (Early 1998).
• Bernd Eichinger's Constantin Film is another company hard at work on
delivering high-quality German product. Its slate includes:
"Die 3 Madels von der Tankstelle" ("Three Girls at the Gas Station") is a
comedy starring Wigald Boning, Axel Milberg and Franka Potentc from
Peter Brinkmann. Boning is the star of Germany's answer to "Saturday
Night Live"; this film marks his feature debut. (June 12).
"Prince Valiant," a fantasy-adventure film based on the comic series,
marks another international production for Constantin (following "Smilla's
Sense of Snow"). Anthony Hickox directs an international cast including
Stephen Moyer, Katherine Heigl, Edward Fox, Ron Perlman, Udo Kier and
Thomas Kretschmann. The film will be shot in English. (July 3).
• Concorde-Castle Rock/Turner is also entering the ring and will be
promoting Paul Harather's newest release, a holiday comedy entitled
"Weihnachtsfieber" ("Christmas Fever"). (Nov. 13).
• Warner Bros. Germany has quite a few projects in the development and
discussion stage. Two that will definitely be released this year are:
"Die Furchtlosen Vier" ("The Fearless Four") is an animation comedy
based on the classic fairy tale about the Bremer Town Musicians. Currently,
it is set to open just before the fall school vacations on Oct. 2.
"Das Trio" ("The Three") is a crime drama starring Christian Redl and Felix
Eisner from Hermine Hundgeburth. This debut film from Next Film in
Hamburg boasts a five million mark budget and is slated for release on
Dec. 4.—PKay Krieg