Why Does Herr R. Run Amok?

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Why Does Herr R. Run Amok?

1970

1h 36m

Drama

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92%

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12 Reviews

76%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

Herr R. (Kurt Raab), a quietly diligent technical draftsman, has been working at the same architectural firm for a year and a half. At home, Herr R. and his wife, Frau R. (Lilith Ungerer), are good parents to their son (Amadeus Fengler), carefully monitoring his progress at school. Herr R. throws a dinner party for his boss (Franz Maron) and colleagues, but is humiliated when a toast he proposes falls flat. As his days repeat the same boring routine, Herr R.'s unhappiness grows.

Calum Marsh

Village Voice

Fassbinder and Fengler opt to impress upon us a sense of almost unbearable tedium, a strategy so effective that, when drama arrives in the film's closing minutes, the eruption of violence feels like a kind of relief.

May 13, 2014

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

With a sardonic, scalpel-like technique, Rainer Werner Fassbinder and his co-director, Michael Fengler, calmly and gleefully flay the West German version of the American dream.

May 12, 2014

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Vincent Canby

New York Times

A revealing demonstration of how the style of a Fassbinder film becomes its subject.

Rated: 4/5

May 9, 2005

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David Dugas

United Press International

The movie is almost devoid of action and the characters are so long-winded and boring, one wonders if the cast knew the camera was running.

Aug 5, 2021

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Lee Jutton

Film Inquiry

Despite not being as well known as some of his later masterpieces, Why Does Herr R Run Amok? makes for an ideal introduction to the expansive oeuvre of Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

Jun 4, 2020

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John A. Nesbit

Old School Reviews

provocative film that certainly isn't easy to forget%u2014as long as you patiently sit through its entirety

Rated: B

May 23, 2007

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Audience Member

Don't read the Flixter synopsis--it's a spoiler!

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

early fassbinder, very disturbing and dare i say influential. maybe where haneke and von trier got started. great performance by kurt raabe as herr r.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

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Audience Member

This is one of those movies where I can appreciate what the movie is doing, but I just have no desire to be subjected to it.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

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Audience Member

A precursor to a good deal of Haneke's early work, what with its measured take-down of an ordinary schlub's life. Here, though, Fassbinder seems interested not in lecturing so much as considering the man himself, in all his faults and moments of small heartbreak. The scene in which the main character gives a long-winded toast to his colleagues is key to showing how Fassbinder can shift tones and understanding.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

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Audience Member

A revelatory feat of how the technique of a Fassbinder film becomes its premise, nearly impossible for some viewers and captivating for others, its hatred of complacence and society's expectations is so forcibly felt that the jolting finale is as rousing as it is shocking.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

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Audience Member

âWarum LÃ¤uft Herr R. Amok?â feels like a completely current movie even decades after its original release. Maybe even more so now than back in the 70's. It's quite low key and undramatic, but still a fascinating and observant view into a quiet but ultimately disastrous process. There is a true and honest feel to the dialog and the apparently normal quality of the scenes feel like they've been extracted from everyday life. This ultimately makes the already surprisingly riveting story an even more shocking one.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

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Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Director

Michael Fengler

Director

Kurt Raab

Herr R.

Lilith Ungerer

Frau R.

Amadeus Fengler

Actor

Franz Maron

Chef

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Synopsis

Herr R. (Kurt Raab), a quietly diligent technical draftsman, has been working at the same architectural firm for a year and a half. At home, Herr R. and his wife, Frau R. (Lilith Ungerer), are good parents to their son (Amadeus Fengler), carefully monitoring his progress at school. Herr R. throws a dinner party for his boss (Franz Maron) and colleagues, but is humiliated when a toast he proposes falls flat. As his days repeat the same boring routine, Herr R.'s unhappiness grows.

Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Michael Fengler
Screenwriter: Michael Fengler, Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Genre: Drama
Original Language: German
Release Date (DVD): May 30, 2006
Runtime: 1h 36m