KOKOWÄÄH - International Movie Review (NO SPOILERS)

As a student in Germany, I've had both the benefit and the task to learn how other societies live, how they interact with one another, and how they view the world. The new perspective from a citizen living in a country who often remains close-minded about the rest of the world is refreshing, and it's given me the opportunity to grow more as a person in relation to the world around me. But, how does this all relate to a film called Kokowääh? In short, I believe it doesn't hinder me from understanding fully some of the choices that the characters make. That being said, this movie still has it's fair share of mistakes made, no matter how endearing the central story is.

The story begins with us being introduced to Henry, a down-on-his-luck screenwriter living day-to-day in Berlin, Germany. He's given the opportunity to change his life around when he's offered to adapt his ex-girlfriend Katharina's successful novel into a script. During this, Henry has thrown on his plate an illegitimate daughter he accidentally had with a friend from long ago. Her name is Magdalena. As Henry tries to manage his new challenge of scripting the novel with the responsibility of taking care of this young girl, the father that had been raising her before Henry even knew, named Tristan, begins to butt heads with Henry over rights and responsibilities for Magdalena. Throughout the time that Henry spends with Magdalena, he begins to develop real, paternal instincts for her and even begins to care for her on a deep level. This care affects the relationships Henry has with Katharina, Tristan, and even the mother of the child, Charlotte.

First off, the story is endearing. This is the classic tale where a cold heart becomes warm. However, Henry does have instances of kindness before he meets Magdalena. He cares for the people he's with, he even told Katharina as much. Henry's just a guy who's drawn a few bad straws lately, and that helped me to buy into his hesitations and his character development a little bit more. The thing that boggles it down is some of the character decisions made. Why is Magdalena thrown into Henry's arms after all of this time, rather than Tristan's? Why, after Tristan and Henry meet, can't Tristan just suck it up and claim responsibility for Magdalena in the mother's absence? Why is Katharina so upset that Henry's had some hook-ups after they've already broken up? And it's because of these chatacter choices, actions, and lines of dialogue that I had trouble staying invested. As an international viewer, it was difficult enough hearing them speak in a foreign language. I just wish that some of the scenes that showcased this deterrent in the thought process of the film as a whole were removed.

The production value is also pretty good. This film by Warner Bros. DE, which is surprising because I didn't even know they had a German film division. The camera work is top notch, the settings and locations all set the mood perfectly, and the costuming is well done. Associated with all of this is the song variation that plays over montages or scene transition -  a number of songs are quite popular, which surprised me. I'm not entirely sure how music rights work, but I'm pretty sure that getting the rights to use a song in a movie is one of the most expensive ventures, more often than not. So to hear all of these popular tunes playing while the characters were driving or walking was a bit of a surprise. Although, it did make the film move along at a brisk pace.

Finally, what did I think of the acting -  international acting, no less? The names in this film will be relatively unfamiliar to my readers living in English-speaking countries, but the name of this movie is Til Schweiger, who is also the director and writer. Some might know him from more famous movies like Inglorious Bastards, where he played Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz, the Far Cry movie as Jack Carver, or Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life, where he played Sean. And this guy brings it in this movie. He's often playing the subtle card, seemingly strong yet dealing with some real issues - those show later than they probably should, but it's all the same effective. The girl playing Magdalena is actually is daughter, Emma Schweiger. This was a brilliant move, because you can really see the chemistry between these two, especially later in the movie when they're closer. Finally want to give a shout-out to Samuel Finzi, who played Tristan in the movie. Probably the most effectively-used character in the film, Finzi is the one who brings the damaged portion of the story: playing a man who he thought was is daughter, only to find that someone else was. Finzi portrays Tristan masterfully, whether he's on his own and emphasizing his struggles or sharing some back-and-forth with Til, Samuel Finzi is the stand-out of the movie, and is worth seeing him interact with literally anyone else in the movie.

By the end of it all, I was seriously frustrated about some of the choices that the characters had made, but the overall theme of the story, the growth of the characters Henry and Tristan, and the performances of the three leads kept me invested enough to enjoy it just a little bit more. Some viewers who aren't German might giggle about some aspects of the movie, but it's ultimately an excellent foray into international film if you're at all interested: production value isn't an issue like it might be with other films, the acting is par for the course, and the story itself is enticing enough to get you through. And if that doesn't sound good enough, at least there's some good songs to listen to as you go through it.

Rating: 7/10