"Lommbock" is a German movie from 2017, freshly released this year and it is the sequel to the 2011 movie "Lammbock", so it's been over 15 years already since the original. Seems as if 2017 is a year for sequels after long breaks as we had T2 already and now we have the German equivalent, even if guns of course don't play a role in here. It is all about marijuana again, at least to some extent. Zübert returns as writer and director and several cast members do the same. This includes lead actors Gregorowicz and Bleibtreu as well as supporting players Wepper, Nelden, Möhring and Monot, maybe others too. This new movie runs for 105 minutes roughly and let me say first that I am not a weed smoker at all and that I did not really like the first film at all. Taking these two factors into account, it is somewhat impressive that I kinda ended up liking this new movie here. The main, pretty much the only reason, is Moritz Bleibtreu, who nailed all the comedic parts from start to finish and elevated the material by miles and miles. I somewhat liked him before this film already, but my respect for him grew even more because here he proved that even if his most known works are exclusively dramatic and actually pretty old already ("Lola rennt", "Das Experiment"), he can also do a pretty amazing job with comedy. It can be entire scenes like when he things the pig farm is a secret hideout for a marijuana plant or single small moments like when he is impressed by the amount of money the boy makes every month with his weed dealing business. And there are many more example of that.
Sadly, the consequence is also that every time when Bleibtreu is not on screen the film loses a great deal of quality, be it the scenes with Gregorowicz and Neldel, the scenes with the central character's soon-to-be wife, the scene for example with Gregorowicz' character and his dad that felt really pointless and rushed in or the fairly embarrassing Mehmet Scholl cameo. It's just not on the same level anymore without Bliebtreu and I would not really blame Gregorowicz, but rather the screenplay. At times also Gregorowicz almost seems like one who is watching Bleibtreu let it all out in a way that we, the audience, do. Also not all the comedy is working. For example the scenes with the Polish dialogue could have been left out completely as this already wasn't funny the very first time. The fake urine part towards the end is also a bit for the sake of it and only worth some cheap laughs. I still give the film a bit of a thumbs-up as the nostalgia part was done fairly convincingly by Zübert I guess as I as one who like I already said did not really like the first film felt said nostalgia a bit, so those who liked/loved the first will feel it even more. It may generally be a good idea to (re)watch the first before checking this one out. But this new movie is really only a success when it comes to the funny moments (many of them). The dramatic moments like the previously mentioned father-son struggles, the moment when Bleibtreu's character says Gregorowicz' only came back because he needed something or also the split-up at the very end almost are moments that hurt the film more than they helped. Still being kinda generous here I give this film three out of five stars and looking at the pretty weak quality of German comedies these days, maybe this one is as good as it gets for now as it at least has some funny moments and also does not take itself as seriously like some recent Schweig(höf)er films. Lommbock is worth checking out, but you may want to see the first film first and then decide for yourself if you are willing to spend another 100 minutes on these characters, so it is a bit on the pointless side for me to (not) give a recommendation. I'm just curious if there will be a third film at some point. I guess the three key players (Gregorowicz, Bleibtreu and Zübert) are still young enough 10-15 years from now, so if they reach the level of this second film once again I'd say why not.
Sadly, the consequence is also that every time when Bleibtreu is not on screen the film loses a great deal of quality, be it the scenes with Gregorowicz and Neldel, the scenes with the central character's soon-to-be wife, the scene for example with Gregorowicz' character and his dad that felt really pointless and rushed in or the fairly embarrassing Mehmet Scholl cameo. It's just not on the same level anymore without Bliebtreu and I would not really blame Gregorowicz, but rather the screenplay. At times also Gregorowicz almost seems like one who is watching Bleibtreu let it all out in a way that we, the audience, do. Also not all the comedy is working. For example the scenes with the Polish dialogue could have been left out completely as this already wasn't funny the very first time. The fake urine part towards the end is also a bit for the sake of it and only worth some cheap laughs. I still give the film a bit of a thumbs-up as the nostalgia part was done fairly convincingly by Zübert I guess as I as one who like I already said did not really like the first film felt said nostalgia a bit, so those who liked/loved the first will feel it even more. It may generally be a good idea to (re)watch the first before checking this one out. But this new movie is really only a success when it comes to the funny moments (many of them). The dramatic moments like the previously mentioned father-son struggles, the moment when Bleibtreu's character says Gregorowicz' only came back because he needed something or also the split-up at the very end almost are moments that hurt the film more than they helped. Still being kinda generous here I give this film three out of five stars and looking at the pretty weak quality of German comedies these days, maybe this one is as good as it gets for now as it at least has some funny moments and also does not take itself as seriously like some recent Schweig(höf)er films. Lommbock is worth checking out, but you may want to see the first film first and then decide for yourself if you are willing to spend another 100 minutes on these characters, so it is a bit on the pointless side for me to (not) give a recommendation. I'm just curious if there will be a third film at some point. I guess the three key players (Gregorowicz, Bleibtreu and Zübert) are still young enough 10-15 years from now, so if they reach the level of this second film once again I'd say why not.