Der Jobkiller

An excellent movie, a must for everyone interested in sociology, management or leadership. Terrific acting, partly by amateurs playing themselves, and a setting as realistic as your factory next door. For pessimistic people maybe a bit too depressing...

It has all the pieces of docudrama. Not professional actors, clash between workers and managers, admirable performances - Jean Claude Vallot is the main example - Jalil Lepris giving the fair portrait of young man discovering the real side of reality. A film about family, illusions, youth , friendship and fundamental options. Admirable in each detail.

Although the context for this film is the political tension surrounding the introduction of the 35 working week, the soul of the film lies in the relationship between father and son and its power to evoke folk memories of other, epic, generational struggles.This power comes not so much from what is said but from what is NOT said - looks, gestures, silences.This makes it sound as though the film is ponderous but it isn't: the context makes sure that there's plenty of action and there is a lightness of touch in the family scenes.The two struggles ( familial and political)are perfectly intertwined with each adding meaning to the other.The Human Resources of the title therefore refers not just the rather inhuman term for personnel management - but also to the resources which father and son find within themselves to cope with their respective situations.

There is a naturalness about the location, the setting and the pace that makes this film a refreshing change from Hollywood High Tech. It is well worth seeing.

I am French and I am very proud when I see that such a movie can be produced in my country - It's not a movie with Gerard Depardieu, it's a movie with real situations and real people, about working in a factory, blue collar and white collar confrontation, family feud. Acting is great with only one professional actor, the rest being amateurs. I highly recommend it. It's not an easy piece. But it will you make think.

Despite the apparently 'dry' subject matter of conflict in the workplace, this is a passionate film. At times,the scenes are so realistic and so involved that you forget this is a film and are actually watching scenes from real people's lives (which is perhaps because many of the actors are no-professionals as in Bresson & Loach). The film does not provide any easy answers, only more questions. I found the scenes between the father & son very moving especially the one at the end where the father continues working at his lathe whilst the son first berates him for his failure to stand up for his rights and then hurls his father's work angrily onto the floor. A very compassionate film.