Competition
Das Mambospiel
When German director-actor Michael Gwisdek, who is romantically linked
with actress Corinna Harfouch, makes a film about an actor-director who
is romantically linked with an actress – played by Corinna Harfouch – one
can’t help thinking that the filmmaker is stealing from his own life. "No,"
laughs Michael Gwisdek, "only details of Das Mambospiel are autobiographical,
not the love story, conflict or war stories of my characters."
At the centre is the unemployed actor Martin, who dreams of making
a film about the rock’n’roll age (an early working title was The Old Rocker).
Unfortunately, no one wants to finance the project. Which brings us back
to the autobiographical element.
Asked how long he worked on Das Mambospiel, Gwisdek answers laconically:
"Shooting time was relatively short, but financing took three years."
And that in part with money from the committed duo Gwisdek/Harfouch’s own
pockets. "What’s one supposed to do?" the director sighs. "In
certain ways, the subvention system is an obstacle to creative flow."
He originally wanted to make a bittersweet love story – "somewhere
between When Harry Met Sally and Taxi Driver", as Gwisdek ironically
comments – for DM4 million. He had to make do with two.
The film begins with a lamp that Maria (Corinna Harfouch) buys, knowing
that she will leave her current lover (Jürgen Vogel), just as her
mother bought a lamp to signal her own divorce. More importantly, she finds
a plastic bag with money that fleeing bank robbers stuffed into a garbage
can. Maria takes the money; enter her ex-boyfriend, passionate film buff
Martin (Gwisdek), charmingly gruff but broke. And, as in the movies, nothing
goes as planned. "The quest for happiness," says Gwisdek, is
a main theme. No wonder that he gives his film an upbeat finale – a film-within-a-film
happy ending.
Synopsis
A film about life, cinema, love - and Berlin. Michael Gwisdek directs
this partly autobiographical story of actor Martin (Gwisdek himself) who
has too much time on his hands as an absurdly ironic satire on "the industry
and a bittersweet homage to Berlin between proletarian nostalgia and the
hustle and bustle of modern consumerism". Martin's dream is to make a film
about the rock'n'roll era, but neither prospective producers nor his ex-girlfriend
Maria are particularly excited by the idea. Maria, who is bored by her
current lover, finds a bag full of money in a bin - money that bank robbers
on the run have deposited there. And money that would be more than welcome
for Martin's film.
Gwisdek (his Abschied von Agnes was shown in competition in 1994) is
one of the most prominent representatives of the former DDR's school of
acting (his role in Ulrich Weiss' boxing film Olle Henry from 1983 is unforgettable).
His acting, which always seems easy and improvised, and the sharp dialogue
are what bring Das Mambospiel to life.
(Dir): Michael Gwisdek (Scr): Michael Gwisdek (Cast): Corinna
Harfouch, Jürgen Vogel, Michael Gwisdek, Henry Hübchen, Franziska
Petri (Running time): 106 Minutes
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