The Death King

1990
6.4| 1h20m| en
Details

Seven episodes, each taking place on a different day of the week, on the theme of suicide and violent death.

Director

Producted By

Manfred Jelinski Film & Fernsehproduktion

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Reviews

CommentsXp Best movie ever!
Lollivan It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.
Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.
Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable
dbborroughs Jörg Buttgereit's second feature film has a simple plot, well not even a plot, its seven days and seven deaths. Seven seemingly unconnected people die over the course of the film. Thats it. Made between his two Nekromantic films this is a dark mediation on death and despair. With the exception of the fake decaying corpse that bridges the stories, this is probably his least graphic film. in its way its a jarring experience because it offers no answers only acts. The acts seem to be connected by letters and such but listening to the commentary track on the European DVD many of the connections were not intentional, though the filmmakers don't deny that they could be connected. As a film its just okay. Its more an experiment then a complete film. Its episodic nature doesn't really ever allow it to come together as a whole. Give Jörg Buttgereit points for trying to go and do something different, and give him points for almost pulling it off (and breaking conventions) but in the end it's an interesting misfire nothing more. (even if some of the images and ideas are haunting me still.)
HumanoidOfFlesh "Der Todesking"-Jorg Buttgereit's second full-length feature film(the first one was notorious "Nekromantik")has no central character or characters,but instead thematic continuity in the act of suicide.Divided into days of the week,it comprises of a series of set-pieces,each of which featuring the self-destruction of a complete stranger.Yes,the production values are low and it's disturbing,but in many ways "Der Todesking" is extremely effective.It makes you think which is sometimes more important than pure entertainment.Unlike the other Buttgereit's works it isn't very gory,but there are some unpleasant images like castration scene in the Tuesday episode,a decomposing corpse and various acts of suicide.The last(Sunday)episode is so depressing and full of pain!-just amazing if you want my opinion.10 out of 10-check out this post-modernism shocker!Disturbing art in the purest form!
Infofreak 'Der Todesking' is my first experience with Jorg Buttgereit. I have no idea whether it is representative of his other work or not, but after watching this puzzling movie I intend finding out. A verbal description of this movie does it very little justice. Scenes of suicides by various individuals are interspersed with footage of a decomposing corpse. That really gives you NO idea how thought provoking, repellant AND beautiful this movie is in places. I'm not sure if I fully understand Buttgereit's "message" or indeed, if there really IS one. But I did get something from watching this movie. It is much more than just a collection of disturbing images. Maybe it is like a painting or a poem, and everybody who experiences comes away with their own ideas or emotions about what it's "about". Whatever your reaction to 'Der Todesking' I don't think you will regret having watched it. There are moments in this movie that will stay with you for a VERY long time... I was fascinated. A movie that blurs the distinctions between art and exploitation, and makes you question yourself. Yes, I was impressed.
goblingoddess Buttgereit does a beautiful film about suicide? Who would have thought that the same director of the filthy, Nekromantik, would be capable of bringing us such a moving portrait about suicide. Well, it is also a film about violent death, not just suicide. This is subject matter that most writers and directors would shy away from because it is too dark. It took someone like Buttgereit with enough audacity to give this disturbing topic its humanity. The film itself is actually seven short films each one dealing with violent death/suicide from different aspects. There are indeed some parts that will move you to tears such as a bridge (somewhere in Germany, we don't know where but that's not important) and on film captions of the occupations (no real names given) and ages of the people who have used the bridge to meet their end. At the very end of the film you are shown photos of smiling children obviously during more happier times. This scene got me emotionally more than any other. I have to spoil one thing but as a cautionary statement, there is one scene unfortunately that has become almost a trademark for Buttgereit: the obligatory castration scene. But get past that and this film is a wonderful, emotional experience. This one certainly has earned it's place on my all time top ten movie favorites. I feel very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to see such a marvelous film. Now if only it would be made available on DVD?