Vicky Berendsen in Tattoo (2002)
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Review
The German thriller Tattoo is in many ways a descendant of modern American genre classics like The Silence of the Lambs and most notably Se7en. The latter’s alienated and gritty atmosphere was captured perfectly by first-time director Robert Schwentke who started his career in the late 1990s by providing screenplays for three episodes of the popular crime series Tatort. Such inexperience makes it even more surprising that Schwentke was able to assemble an excellent ensemble cast led by August Diehl, best known for his Bavarian and German Film Award winning acting debut 23. Furthermore Christian Redl throws in yet another winning turn as a police-officer (he also did so in Bunte Hunde, Vickys Alptraum and Solo für Klarinette to name a few) while the beautiful Nadeshda Brennicke (Das Phantom) plays the mysterious femme fatale. As if that weren’t enough, excellent actors like Monika Bleibtreu (Lola rennt), Ingo Naujoks (Nur aus Liebe) and Jasmin Schwiers (Die Nacht der Nächte – School’s Out) show up in mostly tiny supporting parts.
Fresh out of police school Marc Schrader (Diehl) only has one goal: to get a desk job in which he intends to do as little as possible for his money. Instead Schrader ends up working together with Minks (Redl), a homicide detective who picked the streetwise youngster out of a bunch of aspiring greenhorns. However, Minks had personal reasons for doing so. He hopes that Schrader’s contacts in the underground youth culture might help him find his wayward daughter Marie (Schwiers), a malcontent who ran away about two years ago. Be that as it may, first of all Schrader and Minks have to deal with a serial killer who skins his victims. It turns out that the killer is on the prowl for all tattoos made by a deceased Japanese master with the last one remaining being on the back of Maya Kroner (Brennicke), a friend of one of the murder victims...
Although the story of an unlikely pair of cops hunting a serial killer has already been told many times before Tattoo is a highly interesting movie full of intriguing visuals, moody locations and very good acting. Especially the chronically underrated Christian Redl excels in the role of a troubled police officer haunted by the experiences his job and life brought along.
Tattoo’s major flaw is that despite its stylish mixture of skin (in any sense of the word) and gore it clearly lacks the deeply disturbing intensity of the previously mentioned Silence of the Lambs and Se7en. As a result the tension never actually reaches its peak and somehow remains stuck in second gear. This problem is enhanced by the fact that many of the characterisations and story twists are too familiar and the eventual payoffs fairly obvious.
Still Robert Schwentke’s first directorial effort proves that the man knows how to make a visually breathtaking movie and raises high hopes regarding his future as a filmmaker. The only thing left for Schwentke to learn is how to overcome the “style over substance” issue. But hey, maybe he’ll do so in the inevitable sequel.
Nudity Report: Leading lady Nadeshda Brennicke shows off every inch of her body on various occasions. Aside from many (fake) tattoos this also includes excellent shots of the brown-eyed blonde’s perfectly enhanced robo-hooters as well as her neatly trimmed bush when she “models” for the cops. Additional full frontal nudity can be found in the opening sequence – this time from newcomer Christiane Scheda who walks the streets of Berlin sans clothes before taking the bus. Tattoo doubtlessly is a skinful movie – by any means!!!
Critics: IMDB: 6.6 out of 10 (207 votes). Udo: 2,5/4. Well performed and stylishly directed but nevertheless lacking.
Box Office: Despite receiving good reviews throughout Tattoo attracted less than 80000 German viewers during its theatrical release in April 2002.
DVD: Available on German DVD (region 2 encoded). Released by BMG on the 7th of April 2003. Aspect Ratio(s): 2.35:1 (anamorphically enhanced). Sound: German in Dolby Digital 5.1 (with optional German subtitles). Special Features: An audio commentary by the director, a making of and other featurettes, interviews with the cast and the director, a photo gallery, cast and crew information and the usual bunch of trailers.
Ratings: Tattoo somehow managed to slip by an “ab 18” and ended up being “ab 16” in Germany. It has not been rated by the losers at the MPAA, but would most likely receive a hard “R” for “strong violence, grisly images, sexuality/nudity, language, and some drug content”.
Written by: Udo Baumann, Skin Central Germany