One of the real treats of this site is trying to find obscure and weird foreign films to watch. I’ve been watching movies long enough that finding obscure American and English language films is a relatively easy proposition, and on the Internet it has become a bit of a cottage industry unto itself. But finding obscure foreign films? Therein lies a challenge.
Now there is a catch to that as well. If someone wants to know about foreign films soon to be sent over the pond, all one needs to do is read Twitch on a daily basis to find the most up to date films and your work is done. Sure they lean a little heavy to genre films, but nobody covers new foreign releases better then Twitch, and it really isn’t even close.
But I didn’t start Where the Long Tail Ends to compete with Twitch. Myself or anyone else would be a fool to try. Rather, I wanted to find films that were bizarre enough that they never much registered with the majority of film goers when they were initially released. There is a wealth of great films out there just waiting to be found, and while I may not have enjoyed Tierische Liebe or Lunacy all that much, I’m quite glad that I watched them. Of course, then there is Schramm.
I have known about Schramm for about two years. As far as German horror goes it is rather infamous for how disturbing it is which, considering the notoriety of German underground cinema, is rather impressive. Schramm was one of a handful of films that were the initial inspiration for me to start this site. Films that caught my eye but I was reluctant to take a chance on. Schramm is not particularly hard to track down, but until recently wasn’t easy to find without buying a brand new copy either. It would take effort, and considering the pay off meant that one would most likely be revolted and disturbed out of their skull, meant that I wouldn’t be putting much effort into finding Schramm any time soon.
So, of course, it found me.
Lothar Schramm (Florian Koerner von Gustorf) has fallen and he can’t get up. Considering he is the notorious “Lipstick Killer” that is probably a good thing. And as Schramm lies in a pool of his own blood, his strangely horrific life begins to flash before our eyes. So we see how he lusts after his neighbor (Monika M), kills the occasional person and has rather unhealthy hangups about his mother. But then marveling at the mind of a killer shouldn’t be fun and games, but a nightmare with no happy endings.
Sure enough a few weeks after I decided that Schramm would be a film that I’d review for the site I happened across it at a used DVD store. At that point there really wasn’t much else I could do. I knew I could probably torrent it, but more likely would have bought it new just to watch it, and now it had fallen into my lap for less then ten dollars, and in great condition too!
So I ponied up and bought the film sight unseen, waiting for the opportunity to review it for the site. And wait I did, as I bought it almost a year ago. Coupled with my general apprehension at being disturbed out of my skull and Anna’s disdain for the rather lurid cover meant the film was buried in the slush pile.
Anna: What is this?
Me: It’s Schramm. It is an underground German horror film.
Anna: It looks like a tit and ass movie.¹
Me: If by a serial killer cutting off and wearing a women’s breasts while he prances nude around his apartment falls under the jurisdiction of tits and ass, then yes, this is a tit and ass movie.²
Anna: What is wrong with you?
All this made for a less than optimum viewing environment. So after months of stalling and poor excuses, I finally decided to suck it up and deal and watch Schramm. I’m almost embarrassed to say I’m glad I did.
Let’s get one thing straight off the bat, Schramm is an unquestionably gross and disturbing film. Director Jörg Buttgereit wanted to make a serial killer film that didn’t focus on the cops trying to catch the killer, but on the killer himself. No heroes breaking down the door to rescue the beautiful heroine, only the mind of madness, in all its tarnished glory. And in this endeavor, he unquestionably succeeded.
It is tough to categorize Schramm for anyone who hasn’t watched it. While a horror film, it is by no means scary. It has an unconventional delivery, as the film takes place almost entirely in Schramm’s mind, thus making the plot only slightly linear. And just to add to the confusion, Schramm is peel his skin off crazy, so his perception of events often clashes with reality. The end result is a narrative delivery that is on part Synecdoche, New York, one part Red Road, and one part HOLY CRAP DID THAT REALLY JUST HAPPEN?!?!
For all the complaints people can volley at the film, stylistically Schramm is an impressive film. The cinematography is particularly eye catching, with its numerous long takes, odd angles and queer dolly tracking shots making any questions about the talent behind the camera moot. The standout shot in the film is viewable in the trailer, in which the camera starts at floor level as it focuses on Schramm’s feet while he is doing sit ups. The camera then begins to ascend up and over Schramm, rotating around so he is always in the center of the frame, and when the camera finally rests on the floor behind him, the image is now inverted. It is a physically disorienting shot, and one of the clearest examples of Buttgereit attempting to dislodge the viewers from their comfort zone and physically place them inside Schramm’s skewered vision of the world, and in spite of the potential nausea that might be induced, it is beautiful.
Following the theme of finding beauty in gross compositions, the film’s soundtrack is particularly impressive in its own right. With its odd mix of instruments, it appears to be dominated by bassoons and trombones, the score is caustic and unsettling, making it a perfect compliment to the imagery on screen. And while the score won’t inspire or uplift, it is powerfully compelling and utterly engrossing. Composers Max Müller and Gundula Schmitz truly deserve any and all accolades for creating such a unique and powerful score.
But when it comes down to it Schramm is a film that will be unwatchable for most individuals. You see Schramm isn’t your typical “the serial killer is bad” kind of film. Rather Buttgereit takes a more complicated and morally challenging approach to the character. While Schramm is unquestionably a monster, his place in the world is not so black and white. Scarred by his mother’s obsession with photographing him while she is naked, Schramm follows the belief that serial killers are made, not born. But even more so, Schramm is capable of tender and honorable acts. Clearly in love with the prostitute who lives next door to him, Schramm is devoted and protective of her. But he is also so repressed that the only way he knows how to deal with those feelings are through truly horrific acts of aggression and perversion. But even more shocking and unsettling, as Schramm lays dying, we discover that for as evil as Schramm is, he does have a place in the world. It may not be one we like, appreciate or tolerate, but it is a place. And removing Schramm doesn’t mean we eliminate evil.
¹ Anna thinks all movies are tit and ass movies.
² This does not happen. Something more repellent does.
