The American Friend | | Cast : | Dennis Hopper, Bruno Ganz | | Director : | Wim Wenders | | Studio : | Anchor Bay Entertain | | Format : | Color, Widescreen | | Released Date : | January 01, 1977 | | DVD Released Date : | January 07, 2003 | | Language : | English (Subtitled), German (Dubbed), German (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | NR (Not Rated) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | April 05, 2005 | | Summary | Best Ripley Tale On Film | Content
 | This classic arthouse cult film with it's rare american/german duo, brilliantly played by Dennis Hopper and Bruno Ganz, is simply the best Tom Ripley tale (translated to film) out there.
The American Friend moves quickly into a documentary type of mood with now and then a touch of black humor.
The violence is cold and chilling and serves as a crucial back up in the believability of the story and characters, with credit for director Wim Wenders who never lost grip. As those specific scenes could have easily break The American Friend into pieces if it was too theatrical or not in harmony with the mood that was set. |
| Rating | | | Date | March 01, 2005 | | Summary | German Film Noir | Content
| Wim Wenders always directs top notch films, and this one is no exception. It is an unusual film noir. It is not in black and white, it takes place in Hamburg in the 1970s, and it lacks some of the typical noirish thrills. There is, however, much implicit fear in this film, as the main German character, Jonathan Zimmermann is manipulated by rival international groups like a pawn on a chessboard. Although not an overtly political film, it does (inadvertently or otherwise) reflect the beliefs of some West Germans in the 1970s that their country was dominated, culturally and otherwise, by the United States: the film contrasts the German master craftsman with the American materialist; the "weak" West German with the strong, but evil, American.
The original working title of this film was "Framed," a double-entendre which relates both to Zimmermann's work and the manner in which he is set up. Dennis Hopper gives the performance of his career as the malevolent, paranoid, psychopathic "American Friend," who is set off by Zimmermann's curtness toward him at an art auction. But his performance is dwarfed by that of Bruno Ganz, who carries the movie as Zimmermann, a man suffering from a blood disease who lacks the ability to swim against the whirlpool of events sucking him ever downward. The contrast of characters moves the plot along, and the harbor city of Hamburg provides unusual, but often dismal, scenery. This film is well worth watching.
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| Rating | | | Date | January 30, 2005 | | Summary | Memorable edgy one-of-a-kind thriller | Content
| A German frame maker (Ganz) with a fatal blood disease and therefore perhaps little to loose reluctantly takes on the roll of hit man after a chance encounter with an unethical American art dealer (Hopper). The brilliant acting by Dennis Hopper, Bruno Ganz and Gerard Blain on its own makes this a really memorable movie. Certainly, this is Dennis Hopper at his most edgy, something he does well and in my opinion this is his most outstanding performance ever. Ganz is convincing as an honest and reasonable man trying to make the most of a bad situation. Likewise, Blain is a joy to watch in his role as the smooth professional fixer calling the shots.
I'm not sure if the movie could be said to have a "Hitchcock" influence, but I would say that those who like Hitchcock may well enjoy this. It combines mystery, great camera work and a dark film noir plot with a sound track reminiscent of a Hitchcock movie. The movie also has a black humour to it as Ganz and Hopper bungle their way through the murderous business of doing away with various criminals. The second train sequence for example is an absolute hoot and you could easily be watching a Tarintino movie. Overall, this is one of my favourite films and while it is certainly quirky it stands out as being rather unique. |
| Rating | | | Date | October 25, 2004 | | Summary | Lost in the Unknown with Bruno Ganz | Content
| Plunge a character into a world that is unknown and completely foreign to them and watch as their world comes crashing down around their ankles-this is the plot that outlines _The American Friend_ . Mr. Ripley, played here by Dennis Hopper, is a man who deals with art forgeries and, quite oddly, schemes to involve a stranger named Jonathan Zimmermann (played by Bruno Ganz) in a series of murders. Things go splendidly until Jonathon starts to unwind. Despite Zimmermann's hopes to provide for his family, his involvement with Mr. Ripley's associates only leads to the destruction of his family and his way of life. Slow at times, _The American Friend_ is a film that gains most of its appeal from the richness of the characters. I was particularly impressed with Bruno Ganz's performance, as he manages to establish a strong character and completely distintegrate throughout the film gradually. His performance is so strong that one gets the impression that the film was shot in sequence-the continuity is that good. Dennis Hopper is also strong in his role as the querky Mr. Ripley (a completely different portrayal than the recent Matt Damon rendition), though I was not drawn to his character when opposite of Ganz. Of course, Hopper's character does not really enter the film in any significant way until he has decided to befriend a man he has already doomed, but I still expected a little more from the young Hopper.
Though slow at times due to the action-film turned character piece (often said to be a thriller with no thrills), _The American Friend_ has more than enough suspense to keep an audience going when it is at its best. Worth a rent and a second look.
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| Rating | | | Date | May 14, 2004 | | Summary | Win Wenders' masterpiece | Content
| It's in many ways not fair to entitle this film as just a film noir.
I state that because , first at all remember. we are talking about of Patricia Highsmith , one of the most gifted minds in the north american literatute. If you analyze all her literaries works, as Strangers on a train,(Hitchcock) or A plenn soleil(Rene Clement), you'll find all the characters are envolved in a cosmical trick. It's true that the hopeless who surrounds establishes an anticipated fate in all their actions. But what Highsmith adds in every work, including the american friend is the lack of any kind of feeling or ethical consideration carried to a level that they become in models. I mean, it's very hard for us to find by instance, with a character as Mr. Rippley in any street of any city in the world. These characters are not common.
That's the most remarkable virtue in Highsmith and Wenders so Clement and Hithcock understood and exploited this item like few.
Wenders,one of the three kings of the german filmography in the seventies, (together with Fassbinder, Herzog, and Hauff), knew how to deal with that and make a clever twist in an age where the key works of the neo film noir, a genre that slowly was left and replaced by thrillers with little trascendence.
This film , in my point of view, made grow up to Dennis Hopper, not only as actor, but as a filmmaker. (Remember his best work as director titled Colors).
This film is eternal. And that means just one thing: it's a masterpiece. And obviously, it will resist the years and far of getting old, it will enrich us, every time we watch it. |
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