Cinema Obscura

I just bought The Princess and the Warrior on DVD, and I'd like to encourage you to go out and rent it. This is Tom Tykwer's follow-up to Run Lola Run, and while it's not as crazy and frenetic (and ultimately, satisfying) as that movie, it's still better than a lot of stuff that's out there. It's a poignant love story with a bit of the absurd and fairy-tale to it, and its slight unreality makes it more compelling and also more "real." Franka Potente plays a character utterly unlike Lola, and the fact that both characters are brilliantly brought to life makes me wonder why Potente hasn't made more of an impact in American film outside of the Jason Bourne movies with that square-jawed closet homosexual guy.

The Princess and the Warrior (interestingly enough, in the German title the Warrior comes first) tells of Sissi, a nurse who is saved after an automobile accident is a strange and gruesome fashion. The man who saves her is a small-time bank robber, and Sissi becomes fascinated with him. He wants nothing to do with her, but their paths keep crossing. The love story is unexpected and bizarre, and the nice thing about it is that you can't track it - Tkywer keeps us guessing and doesn't let us get comfortable with that we're watching. Potente and Benno Fürmann, who plays her lover Bodo, are flawed characters who are struggling with what they want and what they think they need. We follow them through their story and we feel their exhilaration and their pain. The fantasy aspects of the film are slight, but they add nice touches. Tykwer shows that he is an accomplished director and a good storyteller. It's no surprise this movie didn't have the impact in the States as Run Lola Run, as it doesn't appeal to the MTV generation, but it's (almost) as good a movie, if completely different.

Anyway, if you're looking for something to rent, check this out. It's a neat movie-watching experience.