"Picco" is a German 105-minute film from 2010, so actually not that long anymore until it has its 10th anniversary. It is perhaps the most known effort by writer and director Philip Koch, especially if you restrict the category to his directorial efforts. The cast includes many young actors from Germany as this is the story of a young man going to prison and (not) getting along with his cell mates while learning about group mentalities in there and life behind bars in general. The central character is played by Constantin von Jascheroff, but I would not say that he gave the most memorable performance. This honor probably goes to Frederick Lau who is just so good at playing evil sadists, even if he, like everybody else, is also a victim of the situation. Second is maybe Swiss actor Joel Basman and with him I have a feeling we will still hear a lot about him in the future. Then CvJ is pretty much on par with Martin Kiefer. A true scene stealer is young German actress Leonie Benesch, who truly made an impact with the little screen time she has. Rainer Bock was solid too, but I am biased here perhaps because I quite like him. Hasanovic is maybe another known name in here.
As a whole, this really is as depressing as it gets to watch these young men with basically no future also losing the last of their connection to outside jail while losing their humanity inside jail. The first 75 minutes or so were okay, a bit mediocre perhaps, but solid moments here and there (like the previously mentioned Benesch scene). But the final half hour is really heavy stuff and to not take anything away from your experience, I won't go a lot into detail. Lets just say you need a thick skin for both the physical, but also the emotional torture that starts the escalation with a letter from loves ones being burnt and this was perhaps the saddest moment of the entire film for me. Basman really shines there and also in everything afterward. Overall, this was a good film, but you really need a thick skin to watch and "enjoy" it. If you got that, then go see it and I am positive you won't regret it.
As a whole, this really is as depressing as it gets to watch these young men with basically no future also losing the last of their connection to outside jail while losing their humanity inside jail. The first 75 minutes or so were okay, a bit mediocre perhaps, but solid moments here and there (like the previously mentioned Benesch scene). But the final half hour is really heavy stuff and to not take anything away from your experience, I won't go a lot into detail. Lets just say you need a thick skin for both the physical, but also the emotional torture that starts the escalation with a letter from loves ones being burnt and this was perhaps the saddest moment of the entire film for me. Basman really shines there and also in everything afterward. Overall, this was a good film, but you really need a thick skin to watch and "enjoy" it. If you got that, then go see it and I am positive you won't regret it.