Big Mäck - Gangster und Gold

As "Big Mack - Gangsters and Gold" (2023 release from Germany; 90 min.) opens, we are introduced to Donald Stellwag, a very tall and very obese guy. We go to "Nuremberg, 19 December 1991", and a very tall and very obese guy robs a bank, literally a quick smash and grab in broad daylight. The bank's security cameras have plenty of footage. Next thing we know Stellwag is arrested, despite his strong claim that he was hundreds of miles away when the robbery took place. At this point we are 10 minutes into the documentary.

Couple of comments: let me admit up front that I had never heard of this true story. If you are in the same position (i.e. Not familiar with this tory), I don't want to reveal too much about what all happens. I will say this: I felt let down when all was said and done. The movie sets you up for something that then never quite develops, or certainly not in the way that I had expected it. Beware: the film makers do a LOT of reenactments of scenes where there is no historical footage. In the end, it feels like this documentary is a missed chance, and that this could and should be much better than the end result we now have.

"Big Mack - Gangsters and Gold" premiered on Netflix this past weekend, and I watched it last night. I'm a sucker for documentaries and for true crime, so I took a chance on this, literally not knowing the first thing about it. If you like true crime documentaries, I'd suggest you check it out and draw your own conclusion,

Good combination of great story-telling combined with German legal system. It did not go into detail the legal system as in judges decide guilt versus American jury but not what the story focus or theme was about. I enjoyed seeing the German countryside and this Big Mac is a jolly entertaining character. Its like watching a train wreck, you want to look away but its so astonishing its captivating. I am new to netflix and do not generally like American t.v. But I am loving these type of docu-dramas. I also enjoyed the play with camera, as in someone saying they have.no money and then camera angle or scene shows something they own or how they are living. I've actually never seen a show that used the camera to make the story biased throughout the storyline.

No pun intended - it is not just the American Justice system that gets things wrong. Either by suing the wrong person or letting a guilty person walk free. There are so many cases, there are so many crimes. I don't know if people are or rather were aware of the one at hand. The person who is not .. well the fastest when it comes to moving ability (due to having a weight problem I reckon you could say), was charged for something he did not commit - was aquitted for later.

That is the premise - and the documentary really is good in breaking down what happened and what continued after our main .. well "character" was able to leave prison. The label he got and that is revealed quite late in the game ... may be an indicator.

A weird documentary ... but a well done one. A curious one I reckon would be the best way to describe it. If there is an ounce of interest, you probably will have ... well "fun" with it ...

Useless German documentry, where they don't voiceover the German to other languages when it would harm their reputation as having a very primitive justice system. You only have the right to hear it if you understand German, and then ofcourse you know it already, but we don't want the rest of the world to learn this.

Coming back to the presentation of the story. It has a very weak narrative with a lot of image presentation and propoganda management.

It takes a lot in speculation and presents a one sided story of the main character while trying to project that the justice system in one of the most modern countries functions well.

Wild ride. Crazy story. If you like ballzy, intelligent gangster victim stories this is excellent.

It even has some post world War 2 history and German legal process educational value to the casual American who doesn't know how life is different in Germany.

Its like German good fellas.

I thought it was awesome. My gf wasn't as into it.

This is a playful documentary that kind of messes with you throughout the doc.

Its kind of like the usual suspects in that regard.

Its got some great twists and you just want to get to the end to see what the heck happened.

I loved the characters in this. They were all real crazy characters.