This film was shot on a small budget, but it still manages to convey a big story. The premise is simple: Two petty criminals, Banke-Bertel and Roever-Rasmus, commit a bank robbery. Their crime is investigated by the brilliant, hot-shot agent, who slowly but surely makes it his goal in life to prevent the two from continuing. Because the two robbers are contacted by a rather psychotic scientist (col. Schnell) who convince them that their talents can be put to a lot more James-Bond-villain-type things. So the agent's goal becomes a lot harder to achieve...
This sounds like a very trite and banale movie. But where it shines is in its character portrayals, its humour and its powerful social commentary. The premise itself is little else than a satire, and the film sometimes smacks of the early blaxploitation-films from the 70's. But beyond the facade, there is a rumbling, a repressed geyser of cracked personalities bursting to get out.
There are no 'good' or 'bad' in the film, no 'right' or 'wrong'. Nothing is what it seems to be. The agent at first appears to be infallible, but falls victim to his own vanity and confidence (I will not tell you how, in case you haven't seen the movie). The robbers, it turns out, were fooled, and we sympathise with them. One of them, Rasmus, starts behaving irrationally without reason and still seems the sanest of the lot. The crazed colonel is sometimes the most trustworthy of them all. The dialogue is also often dualistic and vague, so you are never quite sure about what is really the truth, and whos goals are the truest.
An excellent film. If you find a copy lying around somewhere, rent it! And rent the sequel too. You won't regret it. For powerful, entertaining cinema, it's hard to beat Agent 009 3/4.
This sounds like a very trite and banale movie. But where it shines is in its character portrayals, its humour and its powerful social commentary. The premise itself is little else than a satire, and the film sometimes smacks of the early blaxploitation-films from the 70's. But beyond the facade, there is a rumbling, a repressed geyser of cracked personalities bursting to get out.
There are no 'good' or 'bad' in the film, no 'right' or 'wrong'. Nothing is what it seems to be. The agent at first appears to be infallible, but falls victim to his own vanity and confidence (I will not tell you how, in case you haven't seen the movie). The robbers, it turns out, were fooled, and we sympathise with them. One of them, Rasmus, starts behaving irrationally without reason and still seems the sanest of the lot. The crazed colonel is sometimes the most trustworthy of them all. The dialogue is also often dualistic and vague, so you are never quite sure about what is really the truth, and whos goals are the truest.
An excellent film. If you find a copy lying around somewhere, rent it! And rent the sequel too. You won't regret it. For powerful, entertaining cinema, it's hard to beat Agent 009 3/4.