Leander Haußmann's Stasi Comedy

The celebrated writer Ludger Fuchs has received his Stasi file and is supposed to go through it in the presence of his entire family. But when he stumbles across a love letter that is not from his wife Corinna, the story gets dicey - and Ludger embarks on a journey into his past. As a young man (David Kross), he was recruited by the Stasi to work as an undercover investigator scouting out the bohemian scene in Prenzlauer Berg. The life he encounters quickly makes him doubt his mission. For Ludger enjoys freedom, art and love - not just with one, but with two women at once....

With this "Stasi comedy" Leander Haußmann concludes his GDR trilogy, which he once began with "Sonnenallee" and continued with "NVA". Once again, Haußmann succeeded in luring a great ensemble in front of the camera. Even the smaller roles are well cast. Tom Schilling, Jörg Schüttauf, Alexander Scheer and Detlev Buck, for example, do the honors and radiate enormous enthusiasm. But the film is carried by David Kross, Antonia Bill and Henry Hübchen, who deliver truly wonderful performances. This works on both the comedic and emotional levels.

Although there are many good things to say about the comedy, the film also has a few problems. The biggest one is that the story keeps changing tone. At times it's cryptic and very funny, at other times it's rather quiet and thoughtful, and then it's unrestrainedly silly, over-the-top and a bit flat. All in all, this just seems inconsistent and prevents the story, which is really good in itself, from playing to its full strengths. In view of the great ensemble, the wonderful set and the many very successful moments, this is really a great, great pity.

"Stasi-comedy" is one of the films that I really wanted to like. Scenes like David Kross' first appearance at a traffic light are so delightful that the expectations of a Leander Haußmann comedy are definitely met. But then there are always moments that just don't want to fit together in terms of tone, which unfortunately diminishes the entertainment value considerably in places. Thus, the "Stasikomödie" falls short of its potential, but on balance still offers enough positive aspects that justify a "Sehenswert" despite the criticisms.

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp