Kammerflimmern (2004)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Hendrik Hölzemann

Writer:

Hendrik Hölzemann (writer)

Release Date:

3 February 2005 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot Keywords:

Flashback Sequence | Sex Scene | Cologne Germany | Adultery | Hospital

Awards:

7 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Matthias Schweighöfer	...	Crash
Jessica Schwarz	...	November
Florian Lukas	...	Richie
Jan Gregor Kremp	...	Fido
Bibiana Beglau	...	Dr. Tod / Frau Neumann
Carlo Ljubek	...	Tommy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Eva Maria Bayerwaltes	...	Kölsche Schwester
Ilknur Boyraz	...	Frau Treptvko
Oliver Bröcker	...	Methadonmann
Marcus Calvin	...	Hilfloser Chirurg (as Marcus S.C, Calvin)
Cornelius Dane	...	Feuerwehrmann mit Tättowierung
Ismail Deniz	...	Türkischer Mann #1 (as Ismail Denez)
Karin Eisele	...	Hebamme
Christoph Franken	...	Portier
Johanna Gastdorf	...	Mutter des Mädchens
Paul Herwig	...	Crash's Vater
Christian Hoening	...	Herr Liebold
Hendrik Hölzemann	...	Feuerwehrmann #1
Martin Hölzemann	...	Junger Arzt
Marlene Iding	...	Luisa
Steffen Jürgens	...	Krankenhauspatient
Silas Kaul	...	Klein Crash
Anabelle Lachatte	...	Crash's Mutter
Marie Sarah Linke	...	Gehässige Schwangere (as Maria-Sarah Linke)
Katharina Lorenz	...	Nachtschwester
Hannelore Lübeck	...	Metzgerin Bremicker
Paul Milbers	...	Feuerwehrmann #2 (as Paul Jan Milbers)
Levent Milli	...	Türkischer Mann #2
Tom Mirus	...	Feuerwehrmann #3
Celina Neser	...	Nachbarmädchen
Ulrich Noethen	...	Prof. Olivari
Volker Spengler	...	Hundemann
Hans H. Steinberg	...	Einsatzleiter Feuerwehr
Christa Strobel	...	Alte Frau Neugier
Laura Syniawa	...	Mädchen (as Laura Charlotte Syniawa)
Hagen Tezlaff	...	Nef-Fahrer
Ibrahim Tortas	...	Alter türkischer Mann
Esther Trinczek	...	Frau des Apoplexpatienten
Margret Völker	...	Fidos Frau
Martin Walch	...	Apoplexpatient
Ingeborg Westphal	...	Frau Liebold
Rosel Zech	...	Oma Crash

Also Known As:

Off Beat (Canada: English title) (festival title) (International: English title) (USA) (festival title)
Ventricular Fibrilation (literal English title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

German | Turkish

Color:

Color

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:III

Filming Locations:

Cologne, North Rhine - Westphalia, Germany

Company:

Bavaria Filmverleih- und Produktions GmbH

Trivia:

The real ambulance car 01-83-02 in Cologne is a newer car and is driven by the German Red Cross.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The Pschyrembel on the Doc's desk in the Retrospective of Crash is the newest version from 2003. So it can't be there when Crash was a young boy.

Movie Connections:

Features White Wilderness (1958)

Rescuer, Rescue Thyself

"Off Beat" is very different from other films, as its English title suggests. (The German title, Kammerflimmern, is the technical name for a deadly kind of heart attack that paramedics like the ones in the film hate to encounter.) For the first half hour, "Off Beat" is a realistic re-creation of the daily life of Crash, an EMT in Germany, his colleagues and the patients—many of whom are colorful low-lives. Only the meticulous production quality keeps the viewer aware that this is not a "reality" show. After that, the film goes its own, distinctive dramatic way. Along the way, Crash gets involved with the pregnant widow of a junkie he tried valiantly but unsuccessfully to bring through an overdose.

There will be long discussions as to whether or not there is a philosophical or religious Weltanschauung, conveyed in this film, or, if so, what it is. In the last half hour, the twists and turns become very intense and unexpected. I wonder if EMT services in Germany really have such crack professionalism to them as the ones in this film.

If is probably too much to expect, that this television film will have a USA release. I hope it will be made available for stateside audiences. To call it a change of pace is a great understatement: understated, this film is not!