Men... - Movie review
What to do if your wife has a lover? In Doris Dörrie's comedy "Men…" (1985, original title “Männer”), which celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, our protagonist Julius Armbrust (Heiner Lauterbach) opts for a very unusual solution. It has to be said that Julius actually has everything one could wish for: he is a successful ad exec, mid-30s, married to Paula (Ulrike Kriener) and father of two children. But in addition to money, success and family, he is also having affairs.
No question about it, Julius gets what has long been coming to him from his wife Paula. On his twelfth wedding anniversary, he is shocked to learn that she too has a lover. And an old hippie to boot! Stefan (Uwe Ochsenknecht) may be the same vintage as Julius, but in Julius’ eyes, he is an out-and-out loser: unemployed, a bit too casual and totally without drive. So Julius decides not to give up quite so quickly.
In revenge, Julius moves into his rival's flat under a pretext. The absurd plan: to turn Stefan – the notorious bohemian – into an ambitious yuppie, and thus make him uninteresting to Paula. Then something happens that nobody expected - Julius and Stefan develop a friendship. Paula too finds the new flatmate intriguing... but why does he always wear a gorilla mask when she comes by?
A classic among relationship comedies and a real 80s hit. With "Men…”, the director and her actors not only wrote film history, but also won the German Film Prize in 1986. In short: It's worth watching!
Still: “Men…“, 1985 © Olga Film, Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen