Toni Erdmann

A man thinks his daughter is too serious and career focused, so makes an impromptu visit to see her on a work trip in Bucharest. He bombards her with practical jokes, donning a false set of teeth and creating a character, ‘Toni Erdmann’.

Much of the comedy comes from the daughter being mortified but also barely containing her laughter as her father talks to her colleagues ‘incognito’. He preys on the knowledge that she’d be too embarrassed to admit such a buffoon could be her father.

It doesn’t sound like much but it’s often hilarious and provides an interesting dynamic on which to build the father/daughter relationship.

At 2h40m Toni Erdmann demands quite a bit of your time but the gentle pace is also part of its appeal. Things don’t really get going for about an hour but Ade uses the time to carefully lay out the scenario and flesh out the characters.

This is definitely one in a million. Perhaps it’s not as side-splittingly funny as everyone is saying but Toni Erdmann is still a truly charming, tragic, genuine and heart-warming film.

http://benoliver999.com/film/2017/02/04/tonierdmann/

Despite the lengthy running time, the film kept me engrossed throughout. Moving and funny, this is the kind of film that makes you question not only your family relationships, but also your attitude to life. Sometimes we can take ourselves too seriously.. the film, through the quite bonkers Mr Erdmann, teaches us not to. Delightful and strange, see it before the inevitable schmaltzy Hollywood remake.

People who liked _Toni Erdmann_ are the ones who laughed while watching it, so it really depends on what tickles you and whether or not it does translate well for you (despite what people say, humour is **not** universal, especially the one with dialogue). My suggestion is to try and forget what the critics said and watch it with an open mind, there's many good things to be said about this movie, but also as much many not good things (runtime, for example).

I kind of identified with the father and his message, but maybe not with the method he chose to deliver that message, so it was kinda a hit or miss for me in most of the movie's big moments, and in the end I didn't feel like I took away anything of value when the credits started rolling.

In short: it's a weird movie... like, really weird.

I have kind of a problem with this film. Definitely it's good drama but honestly, I have no idea why many people perceive it as a comedy. Ok, some of the scenes are remotely funny but while I've heard opinions that people almost died with laughter watching this, for me it was a truly sad film and I read somewhere that the cast thought of it the same way. Don't get me wrong, I usually love such weird and original humour but this time the sadness and feeling of loneliness were overbearing.

And for sure it was good. The gradual storytelling, getting to know the characters, I won't complain about the screentime because it's worth it and I didn't feel like it was tedious or forced. But my problem is: I have a real, total antipathy against Toni/Winfried. I understand his will to connect with the daughter and show her "life" but the way he is trying to achieve that is so irritating and without respect towards his daughter's life.

The final scene also left me with mixed feelings about his behaviour throughout the film [spoiler] One second he tells Ines that life is all about cherishing moments, and then he leaves for A CAMERA? Really? It's like he left Ines AGAIN, all alone and waiting as, I've felt, it's been for a majority of her life. Maybe that's the whole point of his character? [/spoiler]

The film is really well directed and I recommend it to everyone, it's just a matter of perception of the main characters (really well acted, especially Huller was amazing) and their behaviour.

dziewczyna robiąca karierę, samotna, bzykająca się z plastikowym kolesiem, nudząca się z równie plastikowymi jak ona koleżankami, obracająca się w "wielkim świecie" wielkich biznesów.. i ojciec.. który widząc ją taką niedostępną, odkrywa jej plastikowy świat i próbuje pomóc.. chmm gdy czytałam recenzje, myślałam, że ojciec będzie takim klaunem, będzie przeginał, będzie robił siarę z jej życia.. rzeczywistość filmowa okazała się bardziej subtelna. owszem.. przebiera się.. owszem, może i trochę robi z siebie idiotę, zresztą, czy naprawdę idiotę?.. dziewczyna jest sztywna, skoncentrowana na sobie, sukcesie.. przełomem jest scena, gdy ojciec zabiera ją do przypadkiem poznanej rodziny, zostawia przy malowaniu wielkanocnych jajek i każe śpiewać.. o miłości.. i rodzinie.. i relacjach.. jaki film? fajny... jakieś tam sceny seksu, dosłowna nagość, ale jakaś taka nierażąca. miotanie ojca, który próbuje nauczyć swoje własne dorosłe dziecko, by choć chwilę zaczęło cieszyć się życiem... niesamowite.. i nawet, jeśli ojciec robi z siebie klauna, nawet, jeśli udaje przed jej przyjaciółmi a to ambasadora a to coucha.. nawet jeśli gra, bawi się to., znając jego cel, film staje się taki.. tragiczny.. udaje się? nie wiem.. czy da się nauczyć dorosłą osobę, żeby zaczęła żyć?.. właściwie zazdrościłam.. dziewczyna potrafiła przy swoim ojcu wciągnąć kokainę, potrafiła prowadzić rozmowę ze swoim wielkim bossem, ojciec.. jej na to pozwolił.. pomimo tego, że to on jej pomagał, pozwalał jej na bycie dorosłą, a ona potrafiła nie zachowywać się przy nim jak dziecko.. zresztą, może stąd ten tragizm.. jak nauczyć życia DOROSŁĄ osobę?... maybe..

This is an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Picture. It is anticipated that it is a contender, second only to _The Salesman_. This is one bizarre movie! It is very long. It had moments so ludicrous that it made me smile, but humour is highly subjective, and this style went right over my head. I can only give it a 6 (fair) out of 10.

sweet genuine drama about father and daughter, something that i never thought german cinema is capable of