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FILM REVIEW: Toni Erdmann (2016) – filmed in Bucharest, Romania and Aachen, Germany
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FILMED IN ROMANIA

FILM REVIEW: Toni Erdmann (2016) – filmed in Bucharest, Romania and Aachen, Germany

March 14th, 2017 Sonja FILM REVIEWS, FILMED IN GERMANY, FILMED IN ROMANIA, GERMAN FILMS, NEW POSTS
FILM REVIEW: Toni Erdmann (2016) – filmed in Bucharest, Romania and Aachen, Germany
(Last Updated On: 2nd November 2018)

Everyone is talking about the German comedy surprise of the year, which was a big hit in Cannes and even received an Oscar nomination for best foreign language film. So what’s all the fuss about? Well, Toni Erdmann is certainly different from any other German comedy. Plus, it holds a couple of surprises…

The Story

Toni Erdmann opens up in Aachen, Germany where Winfried Conradi (Austrian star Peter Simonischek) is a divorced music teacher with a very odd sense of humour and a passion for childish pranks.

When his beloved dog Willie dies, Winfried decides to reconnect with his daughter Ines (Sandra Hüller) and spontaneously flies to Bucharest, Romania where Ines is busy climbing the career ladder as a high-flying management consultant.

Winfried soon realizes that Ines isn’t happy and thus tries to cheer her up. However, their opposing views to life also cause a lot tension with eventually lead to a big row and Winfried leaving again.

But Winfried wouldn’t be Winfried if he didn’t return as his hilarious alter ego: quirky CEO life coach “Toni Erdmann”…

Ines and Toni Erdmann. © Komplizen Film

Ines and Toni Erdmann. © Komplizen Film

The Location

The main location is Bucharest, Romania – but it could be anywhere. Romania is one of the poorest countries in Europe. Yet the characters in the film always hang out in luxurious hotels, fancy clubs or neat office buildings.

In this respect, Toni Erdmann reminded me a lot about German drama Age of Cannibals (2014), which follows three business consultants travelling to impoverished and corrupt countries to close shady deals. They never leave their fancy hotels, yet face their own problems and equally harsh realities indoors.

I think that both films are trying to emphasize the well-known cliché that more money and a higher social standing don’t usually lead to more happiness.

Ines and Winfried in the corporate world. © Komplizen Film

Ines and Winfried in the corporate world. © Komplizen Film

The Performance

I must admit that for the first part of the film, I wasn’t sure what all the fuss is about. There are certainly funnier German comedies. But half-way through this long film of 2 hours and 35 minutes, I started to realize what the message might be.

Ultimately, Winfried’s pranks seem to pay off: Ines loosens up and realizes that her own happiness may actually be more important than that of her clients.

Ines finally strips down. © Komplizen Film

Ines finally strips down. © Komplizen Film

The final verdict: If you just see the weird surface of this film, it is just as superficial as the corporate business world. But take a closer look and you will realize that Toni Erdmann is a well-done portrayal about happiness, love and the meaning of life. Weird on the surface, but wonderful on the inside!

*** 3 out of 5 stars

An English subtitled version of Toni Erdmann is in cinemas now and will be available on DVD and Blu-ray soon.

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FILM REVIEW: Toni Erdmann (2016) – filmed in Bucharest, Romania and Aachen, Germany">

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Sonja

Sonja

I am an ex London expat now living back in Germany. Having worked part-time in a cinema since my school days, the cinema (or in 2020 rather Netflix & co) is my second home. If you don't find me there, I am probably travelling the world in order to trace my favourite film locations and film settings. On filmfantravel.com, I combine these two passions by sharing my best tips about film-inspired travel. Join the journey on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @filmfantravel!

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Hi! I'm Sonja from Bremen, Germany. I'm a full-time English to German Marketing Translator, Linguistic Reviewer and Tour Guide on a part-time mission to discover the world through movies and series.

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I recently started watching ski jumping competitio
I recently started watching ski jumping competitions on TV again. This inspired me to rewatch the film “Eddie the Eagle“ (2015), which is currently on Netflix.

The film is based on the real-life story of British ski jumper Eddie Edwards. Eddie managed to take part in the Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada in 1988 even though he only started training for his ski jumps at the mature age of 22. 😂🙈

The scenes for “Eddie the Eagle“ were mainly filmed at the real-life ski jumping hills in Garmisch-Patenkirchen and Oberstdorf in Bavaria, southern Germany.

I personally have not yet been to these ski jumping hills, but I have been to the ski jumping hill „Holmenkollen“ in Oslo, Norway, which is equally stunning.

Have you ever been to a ski jumping hill?

Photo 1: Scene from
“Eddie the Eagle“ (2015). Larry Horricks - © TM & 2016 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.
Photo 2: © Sonja Irani - FilmFanTravel.com

#eddietheeagle #netflix #filminspiredtravel #filmlocations #movielocations #skijumping #holmenkollen #oslo #norway #visitoslo #dreamchasersnorway #lovescandinavia #visitnorway #bestofscandinavia #dreamynorway #norwaytravel #norwaytrip #onlyinnorway

Christmas is almost over and although many things 
Christmas is almost over and although many things have been different this year, some things never change... Such as our favourite Christmas movies that we can watch over and over again... and that make us dream about future travel destinations! 😉 💭 

One of my favourite Christmas series to look forward to this year was the second season of the Norwegian romcom series “Home for Christmas” (OT: Hjem til jul) with @idaelisebroch_official and @felixsandman! The series was released on Netflix on 18 December 2020. 

When I was working as a tour guide in Norway this summer, I was lucky enough to pass by Røros - the UNESCO world heritage town that served as the setting and main film location for the series! 

Read more about the series and its film location Røros on my blog FilmFanTravel.com(link in my bio above)! 

Which Christmas movie has inspired your upcoming travels? 

Photo 1: Scene from “Home for Christmas” (2019-) filmed in Røros, Norway. © Netflix. Photo 2: Me at the same street in Røros, Norway in August 2020. © Sonja Irani / FilmFanTravel.com

#destinationroros #destinasjonrøros  #netflix #netflixshows #norway #roros #homeforchristmasnetflix #hjemtiljul #dreamchasersnorway #traveleurope #filminspiredtravel #filmlocation #filmlocations #movielocations #lovescandinavia #norway #visitnorway #bestofscandinavia #dreamynorway #norwaytravel #norwaytrip #onlyinnorway #rorørosregionen #godjul @visitnorway

Just like American Marketing Manager Emily in the 
Just like American Marketing Manager Emily in the new Netflix series “Emily in Paris”, I followed almost every fashion trend back in 2007. 😂🤷🏻‍♀️Here I am in front of the Eiffel Tower wearing a massive “link chain necklace”. Hey, it was fashionable at the time, okay? InStyle magazine said so! 😂🙈

Writing my newest film review about the American girl who makes the big move to Paris (link currently in bio), I realised that it has been exactly 10 years since my last visit to the city of love in 2010. So I really would like to go back in 2021.

Who else was inspired to put Paris on their post-pandemic travel list by watching “Emily in Paris”?

Photo 1: Scene from “Emily in Paris” (2020-). © Netflix. Photo 2: © Sonja Irani / FilmFanTravel.com

#emilyinparis #netflix #netflixshows #paris #france #citytrip #traveleurope #filminspiredtravel #filmlocation #filmlocations #movielocations #lilycollins #thisisparis #visitparis #ig_paris #parisianlife #hello_france #parisjetaime #parislife #exploreparis

Blarney Castle near Cork, Ireland in full autumn b
Blarney Castle near Cork, Ireland in full autumn bloom back in October 2016.

The castle’s unique attraction is to kiss the famous Blarney stone on top of the castle. What’s more... you apparently get the gift of eloquence afterwards. The catch: You have to lean over backwards - head first - to reach it! Apart from that, kissing a stone that millions others have kissed before is not exactly in line with the current Covid hygiene rules... 😂

As far as I know Blarney Castle itself has not yet been used as a filming location, but the website states that it’s open for bookings for TV and movie crews. Maybe something to look forward to in the year 1 or 2 AC (After Corona). 😂🙈 Let’s hope so because with Ireland being the main film location of major TV and movie productions such as “Game of Thrones”, “Star Wars” and “Vikings”, there is much to discover for film fans! 🤗
-
#blarneycastleandgardens #autumn #autumnleaves #filminspiredtravel #ireland #loveireland #irelandtravel #discoverireland #map_of_europe #visitireland #instaireland #irland #irish_daily #daily_ireland #images_ireland  #castle #castlesineurope #castlesinfall #colorsinfall #castlesofireland #autumncolours


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