Anatomy | | Cast : | Franka Potente, Benno Fürmann, Anna Loos | | Director : | Stefan Ruzowitzky | | Studio : | Columbia/Tristar Studios | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby | | Released Date : | January 01, 2000 | | DVD Released Date : | June 07, 2005 | | Language : | French (Subtitled), English (Dubbed), French (Dubbed), English (Subtitled), Portuguese (Subtitled), Thai (Subtitled), English (Original Language), German (Original Language), Chinese (Subtitled), Korean (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | April 29, 2005 | | Summary | EURO SLASHER | Content
 | ANATOMY reminded me of some of those European horror flicks of the seventies like TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVE or SUSPIRIA. Franka Potente (who gained American notice in the two BOURNE movies) plays a brilliant medical student who stumbles upon a covert medical society which actually goes against the Hippocratic oath. This society has a renegade faction that is performing autopsies on patients who aren't dead! The movie moves a little too slowly for my tastes, and its dubbing takes somewhat away from the movie in that most of the voices all sound alike. The identity of the villain(s) is pretty easy to identify and once the movie establishes their identity, it just turns into one of those chase the heroine around in the dark films that culminates in a shoddy ending, and with sequel written all over it. (ANATOMY 2 was made a couple years later). It's comparable to our teen slashers, but because of the foreign aspects, it seems a little cheesier. |
| Rating | | | Date | November 24, 2004 | | Summary | brilliant, for a horror movie | Content
| Why is it that the best horror movies are foreign? Is it that they are more intelligent and less likely to follow the tired, used conventions of Hollywood? "Anatomie" is basically a somewhat subdued slasher film, but it has the bonus of starring the always fabulous Franka Potente. Unlike the majority of horror movies, this one is WELL MADE and doesn't look like it was filmed in someone's backyard with a camcorder. Though like the majority of horror films, it is set in a college (it's always college or high school), and deals with something psychologically uncomfortable for everyone- possible dissection! Not to mention, the whole good vs. bad convention: is it a bad thing to perform inhumane studies on human cadavers if the research can possibly save lives in the future?
P.S.- don't watch the sequel. ;) |
| Rating | | | Date | September 06, 2004 | | Summary | "Scream" with scalpels | Content
| "Anatomy" is a limp variation on the slasher flick, giving a medical twist. But most of the horrific moments are based more on body parts than on any genuine suspense, and the only really good performance is Benno Fuhrmann. Americans have seen this sort of movie a thousand times before, and it's no better in German.
Paula Henning (Franka Potente) is a promising medical student, who has won a place at the Heidelberg Medical School. But things start to go awry instantly -- after saving the life of a rocker on the train, she finds him dead at the school, awaiting dissection. She finds that his blood was artificially thickened -- meaning murder.
Soon Henning finds that it's not just one murder: The Anti-Hippocratic Society is at work at the school, an underground bunch who cold-bloodedly dissect living people -- all in the name of science. What is even worse, someone in the Society is killing not for research, but for personal hatred. Now Henning must find out the truth, or face being the next victim.
If you're a buff of shrieky horror movies, then you've probably seen the core of this movie -- contrived chills, screams, and a mysterious psycho killer. The sole new element is the close-ups of doctors dissecting living, conscious victims, and that seems to be just for the shock value. After a few minutes, the shock wears off, and we're back to the formula.
A lot of the chills are deeply contrived -- sure, medical labs and dark corridors are scary, but how many dark hospital clinics do you see? It ends up coming across as "Scream" with scalpels. There's even a scene where Potente is chased through a darkened basement by a knife-wielding baddie -- pure cliche. When it isn't formulaic, it's just silly. Dropping organs on the floor?
Franka Potente, despite being the lead, doesn't do much more than walk around looking befuddled. The deeply talented Benno Fuhrmann gives a layered, nuanced performance, and Anna Loos has a bit of fun as a sex-crazed student. The rest of the cast act more like college students on summer vacation. Not to mention do some very hammy death scenes.
It's somehow reassuring to know that Hollywood isn't the only source of really bad horror movies. At least we got "Sixth Sense." However, the flaccid, forced "Anatomy" is nothing but a collage of various American slasher flicks, and the fact that it's from Germany doesn't make it any better. A sloppy, bloody mess. |
| Rating | | | Date | December 16, 2003 | | Summary | Flesh And Bone | Content
| The 2000 German thriller Anatomy, is a solid film, that overcomes a few problems, and will leave you satisfied in the end. Paula Henning (Franka Potente) is a gifted medical student, who is accepted into a prestigious anatomy program. Very few students get this far and it seems like a dream come true. Paula plans to make the most of her oportunity and is eager to stand out. But her ideal school days soon turn into a nightmare when she uncovers the horrifying activities of an ancient secret society, whose members perform grisly experiments on human subjects, while they are still alive. Written and directed by Stefan Ruzowitzky, Anatomy borrows elements from some recent American horror films (or is it the other way around) to tell its gruesome tale. Its cast is populated mostly with young fresh faced actors that look good on camera. Potente doesn't let the typical conventions of the story get in the way of another fine performance, equaling that of her turn in Run Lola, Run. Ruzowitzky makes sure to have just enough excitement and gore to make forget about any story issues.
Most of the main DVD extras are presented in German with English subtitles but don't let that prevent you from taking a look at them. The audio commentary by director Ruzowitzky, showcases a filmmaker with a real zest for the process itself. Its obvious that he believes in his film very much--and isn't shy about it. There are 2 featurettes. A standard "making of" piece and a far more interesting look at the make up effects. There's also a few storyboard comparisons, and 2 deleted scenes, with commentary from the director, to study as well. A music video entitled "My Truth" by Anna Loos, who also appears as "Gretchen" in the film, tops off the video/audio extras. Rounding out the other stuff are the usual TV spots/theatrical trailers, talent files, and a seies of production photos. Anatomy is not a bad little thriller from Germany, that deserves a look, since it got very little play in the states and despite a few story hurdles. *** and a half stars |
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