Plenty of German filmmakers have tried their luck in Hollywood. Some have made blockbusters; others went back home. Now, Dennis Gansel is throwing his hat in the ring with "Mechanic: Ressurection."
Image: Getty Images/A.Rentz
Advertisement
German filmmakers in Hollywood
Dennis Gansel's blockbuster "Mechanic: Resurrection," starring Jason Statham opens this week. Gansel is one of many successful German movie makers who've made it big in Hollywood.
Image: Universumfilm/Daniel Smith
It's not James Bond
"Mechanic: Ressurrection" is the latest film by Hanover-born director Dennis Gansel. He worked with two top stars: Jessica Alba and Jason Statham (pictured). The storyline and setting are reminiscent of a James Bond classic.
Image: Universumfilm/Daniel Smith
The pioneer: Ernst Lubitsch
In 1922, Berliner Ernst Lubitsch became one of the first foreign directors to move to Hollywood and try his luck. He was a silent filmmaker who knew how to deal with large groups of extras - and attain commercial success. For Hollywood, he was a perfect fit. Later, the filmmaker made a name for himself with comedies.
Image: AP
The stilist: Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau
Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau followed on the heels of Lubitsch's success. He had already established himself in Germany's silent film scene before his reputation reached Hollywood. Murnau was known for his artistic approach to imagery and bold imagination. His groundbreaking horror film "Nosferatu" (pictured) was a milestone of the genre. Murnau was killed in a car accident in California in 1931.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
The hit maker: Fritz Lang
Like many other filmmakers, Fritz Lang fled the Nazi regime and immigrated to the US in the 1930s. Lang, who was known in the US for films like "Metropolis" (1927) and "M" (1931), worked in Hollywood until the mid-1950s. There, he filmed adventure and mystery films like "Ministry of Fear," starring Ray Milland and Marjorie Reynolds (pictured).
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/akg-images
The artist: Wim Wenders
After a long hiatus, the New German Cinema filmmaker tried his luck in the US in the 1980s. Wim Wenders was one of the first of his generation to do so, but his success with films like "Hammett" was encouraging. He would later come close to sweeping up an Oscar. His 2012 documentary "Pina" was nominated three times.
Image: dapd
The literary specialist: Volker Schlöndorff
Volker Schlöndorff won an Oscar for "The Tin Drum" in 1980, but it wasn't until five years later that he came to Hollywood. There, he continued what he did best: film adaptations of great novels. He turned books by Arthur Miller and Margaret Atwood into movies. He also honored Hollywood itself by making a film about legendary director Billy Wilder (pictured, left with Schlöndorff).
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
The surpriser: Werner Herzog
Most surprising is the fact that Werner Herzog made his way to Hollywood. Herzog had made a name for himself with his aesthetically refine black-and-white films and bizarre adventure epics with actor Klaus Kinski. He went to the US 10 years ago. Since then, he's continuously made documentaries and feature films with big stars like Eva Mendes and Nicolas Cage, pictured here in "Bad Lieutenant."
Image: 2010 Twentieth Century Fox
The professional: Wolfgang Petersen
With his World War II drama "Das Boot," Wolfgang Petersen became famous in the US and received six Oscar nominations. No wonder that the filmmaker then relocated to America's cinema hub. In 1991, after a rough start, he presented his first US-made film, the mystery "Shattered." Petersen established himself and made high-budget productions like 2006's "Poseiden," pictured here in the making.
Image: picture alliance/kpa
The catastrophe maker: Roland Emmerich
Even more successful - at least as far as box office revenues go - is Roland Emmerich. Even his early made-in-Germany films clearly revealed his penchant for Hollywood blockbusters. Emmerich moved to the US in the early 1990s, where he continues to be wildly successful with catastrophe films. He's pictured here presenting his recent "Independence Day: Resurgence," the sequel to his 1996 classic.
Image: Reuters/D. Moloshok
The returner: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
Florian Henckel von Donnersmarcks debut, "The Lives of Others," was a sensation and was awarded an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. His next film was made in the US in 2010: "The Tourist," starring Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. It was a flop with critics, and von Donnersmarck is now back to working in Germany again.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Buck
The newcomer: Dennis Gansel
In the past few years, a number of young German filmmakers have tried to get their foot in Hollywood's door. Some of them returned, discouraged, to Germany. But that hasn't stopped others - like Dennis Gansel - from trying. His latest action flick, "Mechanic: Resurrection," opens in US cinemas on August 26.
Image: Getty Images/A. Berry
11 images1 | 11
It's got popular US stars, exciting backdrops, a fast-paced storyline, and a hero with a dark side that seems clean and does everything he can to save his girlfriend from the bad guys. "Mechanic: Resurrection," which opens Friday in US cinemas, has everything you'd expect from a typical Hollywood action film.
With its restless jumps from one exotic location to the next, it even seems a bit like a James Bond film - an association that wasn't coincidental.
Hollywood hasn't lost its pull
The $40-million film received some funding from France and was directed by German filmmaker Dennis Gansel. Born in 1973 in Hanover, Gansel is the latest young German director to try his luck in Hollywood: The movie capital hasn't lost its magnetic power.
Gansel is in good company. The number of German-speaking filmmakers that have gone to Hollywood over the decades is impressive. However, not all of them came voluntarily; some were forced to flee the Nazis in the 1930s and 1940s.
The bad guy and the damsel: Sam Hazeldine and Jessica Alba in "Mechanic: Resurrection"Image: Universumfilm/Daniel Smith
Not all of them found happiness and were fortunate in Los Angeles. Many were artistic, sensitive characters that later decided to turn their back on Hollywood. Others, like Roland Emmerich, managed to establish themselves and rise to fame.
It's not surprising that Dennis Gansel was also drawn to Hollywood. After completing his studies at the University of Television and Film Munich, he made six films in Germany, trying his hand at a variety of genres.
Dennis Gansel has talent in many genres
His debut film, "Das Phantom" (The Phantom), was a fast-paced police-terror thriller made for television. He followed it up in 2001 with a money-making teen comedy called "Mädchen, Mädchen" (Girls, Girls). Three years later came a Nazi drama, "Before the Fall."
In 2008, Gansel made the sociopolitical thriller "The Wave," which also enjoyed success in cinemas. Although his 2010 vampire film "We Are the Night" was a box-office flop, he showed that he was capable of understanding the popular horror genre.
Exotic locations added to the James Bond effect in "Mechanic: Ressurection"Image: Universumfilm/Daniel Smith
In 2012, "The Fourth State" was a media and political thriller set in Moscow. Despite its poignantly current theme - terrorism and the East-West conflict - Gansel had difficulty financing the film. Entertainment and action don't go over well with Germany's film sponsorship authorities.
It looks like a James Bond film, but it's not
So it's not surprising that Dennis Gansel, who's more than proven his technical directing skills, looked around for other options. In 2014, he began extensive filming for "Mechanic: Resurrection" - in Thailand, Brazil, Australia and Bulgaria.
In addition to Jason Statham and Jessica Alba in the leads, Gansel was able to get stars like Tommy Lee Jones and Michelle Yeoh on board as well.
Dennis Gansel on the set of "The Fourth State"Image: 2011 UFA Cinema
Even though his Hollywood debut has gotten off to a good start, Dennis Gansel - who recently married his girlfriend Ann-Kristin - doesn't want to settle down in the US permanently. His next project, a polit-thriller based in Brussels, is already in planning.
He is also working on the project "Berlin, I Love You," with directors and conductors like Oren Moverman, Marjane Satrapi, Giuseppe Tornatore and Ai Weiwei.
Gansel also has yet another film in the works - a family fantasy tale based on the famous children's book series, "Jim Button and Luke the Engine Driver." Shirly MacLaine has been cast in the lead. Filming for the puppet classic will start in October, in Berlin and Munich.
After that, Hollywood will certainly come knocking on Gansel's door again.