Run Lola Run (1998)

After a botched money delivery, Lola has 20 minutes to come up with 100,000 Deutschmarks.

Director:

Tom Tykwer

Writer:

Tom Tykwer (screenplay)

Stars:

Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreu, Herbert Knaup

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 28 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Franka Potente	...	Lola
Moritz Bleibtreu	...	Manni
Herbert Knaup	...	Vater
Nina Petri	...	Jutta Hansen
Armin Rohde	...	Herr Schuster
Joachim Król	...	Norbert von Au
Ludger Pistor	...	Herr Meier
Suzanne von Borsody	...	Frau Jäger
Sebastian Schipper	...	Mike
Julia Lindig	...	Doris
Lars Rudolph	...	Herr Kruse
Heino Ferch	...	Ronnie

Storyline

Lola receives a phone call from her boyfriend Manni. He lost 100,000 DM in a subway train that belongs to a very bad guy. Lola has 20 min to raise this amount and meet Manni. Otherwise, he will rob a store to get the money. Three different alternatives may happen depending on some minor event along Lola's run.

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Plot Keywords:

running | race against the clock | repeated event | female protagonist | episodic structure | 

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Taglines:

The Pressure is Rising, The Adrenaline is Rushing, The Clock is Ticking

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Germany

Language:

German English Japanese

Release Date:

18 June 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lola Runs

Filming Locations:

Mitte, Berlin, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

DEM 3,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$92,488 (USA) (18 June 1999)

Gross:

$7,267,324 (USA) (21 January 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

X-Filme Creative Pool, Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), Arte

Technical Specs

Runtime:

81 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The decoration on the wall of the teller is a bill from Slovenia, which was in circulation between 1992-2007 (before replaced by Eur).

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Goofs

(at around 50 mins) She is running underneath the bridge, and into the tunnel. Far ahead of her, you see two girls doing flips on both sides in the tunnel. It switches views, and then you are looking at her from the front as she is running, and you never see the two girls again.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[subtitled version]
Narrator: Man... probably the most mysterious species on our planet. A mystery of unanswered questions. Who are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going? How do we know what we think we know? Why do we believe anything at all? Countless questions in search of an answer... an answer that will give rise to a new question... and the next answer will give rise to the next question and so on. But, in the end, isn't it always the same question? And always the same answer?

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Crazy Credits

During the credits, a giant, red ENDE (German for end) crawls across the background, taking several minutes to pass.

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Connections

Referenced in Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps: Finger Sniffing (2006)

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Soundtracks

Wish
Vocals by Franka Potente / Thomas D (as Thomas D.)
Music by Tom Tykwer (as Tykwer) / Johnny Klimek (as Klimek) / Reinhold Heil (as Heil)
Lyrics by Tom Tykwer / Thomas D (as Thomas D.)
Performed by Franka Potente (as Franka Potenta) feat. Thomas D (as Thomas D.)

User Reviews

Riveting action, dynamic sound track, and brilliant editing had me hooked from the first frame.

The concepts are simple. How do our actions affect our own lives, as well as those whom we touch? What part do chance and random events play in determining an outcome? Can we select a different result by making different choices? In short, what is reality? Well, maybe it isn't all that simple, but while others have plowed these same fertile fields, as recently as the film "Go", and also in "The Music of Chance", based on Paul Auster's novel, no one has dealt with such cosmic existential questions with more brilliant originality, fast paced action, and a pulsing score than in this German cinematic masterpiece.

In a compact ninety minutes, combining snips of animation, cinema verité, quirky characters, situations and dialogue, and a pace that makes most music videos look like they've been filmed in slow motion, three versions of the same story sequence unfold, and each time conclude with a jolting finish that defies convention, and keeps the viewer guessing until the final frame.

This is one of those rare cinematic events that is entertaining, satisfying, and absorbing, as well as flawlessly acted, staged, edited, produced and directed. I thought that Lola ran her race with flair and style, and left all others way behind in the dust.