Knockin' on Heaven's Door

This is easily one of the best films that I have seen in a long time and certainly the best of its modern gangster genre. The plot is maybe a touch formulaic but that fits well as the whole film pokes fun of many of the clichees that Hollywood pictures like Pulp Fiction take a little too seriously. Actually, I have heard many people compare it to Pulp Fiction, but the only real similarity I found is in its frenetic style and odd sense of humor. As for humor, the subtitles are well done, so you don't lose much in the translation.

European movies do have this feature: they combine drama and comedy and make you smile because it is too sad to cry.

Moreover, this particular film has a perfectly selected crew and the screenplay is flawless.

To have a dream. This masterpiece is all about it.

Two men, trapped by cancer unconsciously recognizing the sea as the symbol of freedom and eternity are making their last 500 km to the Baltic Sea.

Acting at its best the crew is offering us this warm feeling of sad happiness while singing Guns&Roses "Knock, knock, knockin' on the heaven's doors" and understanding, that such moments do make life.

The movie is great. Simply brilliant. Even if you try to retell the plot you'll miss the whole point, because this movie isn't about the chain of events - it's about the people, the characters, the life itself. There is not a single scene that falls out of the whole composition: even though the plot is not the key issue here, it still beautifully binds the whole story together, perfectly connecting all the dots. And have your tissues ready: no matter how many times I watch it I always cry at the end and I'm not usually very sentimental. As for my male friends who watched it with me several times they usually just stay very silent at the end. It is very emotional and overwhelming: both sad and somehow positive at the same time. I envy those who have not seen it and will watch it for the first time.

The TV guide described the two leads in _KoHD_ as terminally ill gangsters, so when I came to watch it I discovered something quite different from what I had expected.

_KoHD_ is an excellent film that blends facets of gangster, buddy, road movie, comedy and drama genres together into a seamless whole. Initially, Martin and Rudi are, of course, hopelessly mismatched. As they travel towards the sea (their ultimate goal), the relationship between the two men begins to change. The nervous Rudi finds strength and confidence; Martin, on the other hand, who is initially by far the stronger of the pair, comes to rely more upon Rudi for strength and assistance.

Much have been made of the comedy in _KoHD_, and this is a major component - it is the humour that makes the film (which could have been utterly bleak) ultimately an uplifting experience. That being said, however, just when you forget that both men are dying you are reminded forcefully that they are both, as the title suggests, knocking on heaven's door. These two forces - the pathos and the comedy - provide a wonderful balance. Thumbs up.

This movie is not bad, but it is not to good either. I would classify it as a fairy-tale. Rudi and Martin, to about 30-years old man, have both cancer and flee out of their hospital. They make a journey to the sea und use their last days to fulfil their wishes.

By intention this movie is far from realism. For example, you never see symptoms of illness at Rudi, despite he is very sick of bone cancer. There are lot of gunfights, but no one dies or gets hurt. In one scene dozens of police cars chase the two guys. The two main gangsters, Henk and Abdul, are in their black suits a mixture of Tarantino-style guys and the typical german smalltown thug.

That makes the movie very light-hearted, but a bit stupid also. To me good fun for 90 minutes, but I would not look it a second time.