Comment

Oct 09, 2012Monolith rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
The first half of film was funny -- being introduced to the portly Schultze as he enters retirement from mining with his two pals with an illuminated rock as a gift. Their painfully ordinary lives are mundane and almost catatonic; no real excitement other than a lively young barmaid dancing on tables at the local pub. I was intrigued by the monotony somehow. Didn't know where this was going. Schultze attempts to break tradition with some fresher accordion music of the American South at the village polka festival, (to less than glowing reviews), and earns a trip to The States. From this half on I felt the movie lost momentum. No humor to speak of. Perhaps the writer/director's intent was that the viewer is left with an introspective social commentary on breaking out of life's dreary routine; I'm not sure. I felt shortchanged by the ending.