The Robber

(If you want a summary of the film, read anybody else here.) Despite the activities shown, the film abounds in "still waters." The presentation of activities and the principal character sticks solely to the surface without any explanations. The film is enigmatic and compelling, perhaps even boring to some. Any people seeing this together will have much to discuss afterwards.

Anyone seeing it will come in knowing the robber is a runner since that is the basis for all the advertising. I'm no runner and usually not very interested but this was especially fascinating. The actor Lust portrays the title character in a beautifully minimalist performance and also gives the footwork a distinctive style. I don't know if it would win races but it sure works in this film.

Acting and all aspects of the filmmaking are excellent overall. Even the music for the end credits is good for emerging from the deep waters.

Adapted from Dennis Prinz's novel, which is based on real events, "The Robber" has all the elements of a penetrating character study. Unfortunately, director Martin Heisenberg doesn't always use those elements to his advantage. The story is about Johann Rettenberger, an Austrian bandit/marathoner known as "Pump-gun Ronnie." Heisenberg takes a muted, non-psychological approach to his story, and without much in the way of emotional engagement, keeping viewers engaged is certainly more challenging than need be.

Andreas Lust stars as Johann Rettenberger, a serial bank robber who has spent a six- year bid in prison training as a long-distance runner. After being released from prison, Johann runs into Erika (Franziska Weisz) at the Job Center which helps ex- cons find work. The dialogue makes it clear they've met before, but the narrative annoyingly withholds any connection to their past. Why is the beautiful, well-to-do Erika so drawn to this emotionally distant career criminal?

Ultimately, Johann returns to Vienna and combines his two true passions and what he knows best -- running and knocking over banks. His dominance on the marathon circuit gets him noticed, as does his daylight bank heists. Notoriously referred to as "Pump-gun Ronnie," after the Ronald Reagan mask he wears and the shotgun he brandishes. To this day, Rettenberger still holds the record time in the Bergmarathon, a world-famous marathon held in the Austrian Alps.

Frustratingly, we never really get a sense of who Johann is or what motivates him. He is expressionless, cold-hearted, and remains distant throughout. Heisenberg's treatment vividly communicates Rettenberger's neurotic defiance and destructive behavior, but that's no substitute for enabling the viewer to become invested in the character's fate. Johann does not let people into his life, and is a blank cipher as to why he leads the life of a bank robber. It is clearly not the money. Maybe it's the rush he gets, or maybe it is an unexplained obsession. The filmmaker leaves it for the viewer to decide. Although Heisenberg tries to suggest the robberies provide Johann with an adrenaline rush similar to that he experiences while running marathons, the character fails to show any sense of pleasure or catharsis that would make this parallel interesting.

Technical aspects of the film are highly impressive, and the incorporation of Johann into actual Vienna Marathon provides a real sense of authenticity. As a matter of execution, the film's last act is undeniably thrilling. Exceptional work by steadicam operator Matthias Biber gives all the chases and action sequences a visceral energy. "The Robber" could have been a great representation of compulsive behavior. As is, it is a rigid film that is technically sound with a fascinating lead protagonist we still know nothing about.

In watching The Robber, I couldn't help but notice the similarities to this year's Drive. You don't have the blood and cotton candy aesthetic that Refn so expertly delivered that made the latter film really sing, but the titular character is a similar blank state and this story also plays out in a muted way that lets the action do most of the talking instead of the characters. Which sometimes and works and sometimes doesn't. The action scenes are intense and feel really authentic and as we start to get a better understanding of the character, the piece really starts to do some work.

My problem is that we never properly get inside the head of this character, a similar problem that I had with Drive. We get his motivation and the final stretch of the film is tragic and beautiful because of that, but I felt that the whole thing would have been a lot more impressive if I was given an opportunity to emotionally connect with the main character. Unfortunately, the film never allows me to do this because he's presented in such a blank, unemotional light that it becomes more about the ideas than the person. Which is all well and good and the film is certainly impressive, but it holds it back from being something that I could put all of my praise behind and without that wildly unique style that Refn created with his film, this similar project doesn't compare too much.

Still, there's a lot to admire here and aside from the action pieces I really admired the lead performance from Andreas Lust, who was aces in a devastating role in 2009's Revanche. Here he isn't given a lot to work with as an actor, but he commands the screen and presents a character who you simultaneously want to know more about and want to run and hide from. He's fascinating and intimidating, but part of you stands on his side. I just wish I had connected enough so that all of me could be with him.

Johann Kastenberger (Andreas Lust), real life bank robber, would have been considered just another thief but for his second interest -- marathon running. He was still an interesting conundrum as a bank robber, though, in that he never spent any of his ill gained cash. He couldn't put it in a bank, not even a Swiss one, for fear of detection. He couldn't get it out of the country. He didn't seem to want to buy anything anyway. So, it just stayed in a bag under his bed -- not really the best plan for hiding money. We never really find out why he had this compulsion to rob banks, and in the process steal getaway cars. He just did it, and it didn't even seem to make him happy. There was nothing about Johann that expressed happiness, not even his relationship with his girlfriend, Erika (Franzeska Weisz). But what made him a biopic worthy character was his other compulsion -- to run. He was a champion marathon runner who while even in prison, maintained his training regime running circles in the yard and using his own treadmill in his tiny prison cell. When asked by a prison official how his life would change when he got out, he said, 'I won't have to run in circles anymore.' This review is continued at exm.nr/BonnisSteiger . Thanks.

Well I say it's a true story it is, as usual, based on real facts. The film is about a marathon runner called Johann Rettenberger played by the uber brilliant Andreas Lust ('Munich'). After being released from prison for armed robbery he goes on to win a Viennese marathon. He is though a loner and his parole officer is concerned that he seems to shun the company of others – 'the loneliness of the long distance runner' personified as it were.

He soon moves in with an old flame who is still carrying a torch for him. He meanwhile remains as cold as a fish and aside from practice runs he starts to do armed robberies all over Austria. He seems to love the thrill of the chase as much as the loot he is making off with. What follows is a really extraordinary story of a life quite literally on the run. This is in German with good English sub titles.

This is a very well made film, with Lust putting in an excellent performance of a man who is so far removed from societal norms that he has his completely own set of values. This is based on a novel but the real story comes from Johan Kastenberger who did all his robberies in a Ronald Regan mask and his story is probably more sensational than as depicted here. Either way a really superb way to spend 100 minutes and a film I can recommend to all lovers of Euro based crime cinema.