Dobermann Uncut - Jan Kounen - (1997) DVD

The charismatic criminal Dobermann, who got his first gun when he was christened, leads a gang of brutal robbers. After a complex and brutal bank robbery, they are being hunted by the Paris police. The hunt is led by the sadistic cop Christini, who only has one goal: to catch Dobermann at any cost.

Dobermann is one of the best 'live action comic books' ever made. The characters, the cinematography, the dialogue and the violence all have the comic book 'feel' - ultra-stylized and larger than life, and full of very black humor.

The movie is basically a heist movie, with Dobermann himself (Vince Cassell) and his band of unlikely partners plotting a robbery, and pulling it off... but getting bad-ass cop Cristini (Tcheky Karyo) on their tale for their troubles.

The movie is exceptionally well done - clearly a lot of love went into it from director Jan Kounen and from the cast. Some of the camera work is utterly unique and stunning, and the performances all round are excellent. Tcheky Karyo is particularly memorable - his role in KISS OF THE DRAGON was basically his DOBERMANN character watered down to about 1%. Dobermann himself is perhaps the least well developed character, remaining pretty detached and enigmatic throughout.

There's lots of sharp dialogue and bits of absurdity that will obviously draw comparisons to Tarantino. This all leads to some action set pieces that are very very nicely done, including a stunning and extended climax.

Before seeing it, I didn't think it could possibly live up to Brotherhood of the Wolf, but I enjoy this movie more each time I watch it.

If you like your heroes dirty, your characters about 3 times larger than life, your camera restless, your dialogue cynical and vicious and your violence explosive... then Dobermann is a wonderful movie you should see.

Quality Rating Score:
Questions? Use the Online Information Request feature