Das Experiment (2001)
Genre: Drama / Thriller
Duration: 120 minuten
Alternative title: The Experiment
Country:
Germany
Directed by: Oliver Hirschbiegel
Stars: Moritz Bleibtreu, Oliver Stokowski and Christian Berkel
IMDb score:
7,7 (98.671)
Releasedate: 7 March 2001
This movie is not available on US streaming services.
Das Experiment plot
"You are invited to participate"
In a research lab, a prison is built in which 20 men are placed to play prisoners and guards. The prisoners are locked up and have to follow a number of rules; the guards must maintain order without using force. Everyone is free to stop whenever they want, but if they do, they will give up their wages. At first, the mood between the two groups is jolly and relaxed. But slowly a fight ensues, and the guards resort to drastic punishments to maintain their ascendancy.
Actors and actresses
Tarek Fahd, Häftling Nr. 77
Steinhoff, Häftling Nr. 38
Schütte, Häftling Nr. 82
Joe, Häftling Nr. 69
Häftling Nr. 53
Dr. Jutta Grimm
Häftling Nr. 40
Häftling Nr. 21
Häftling Nr. 15
Häftling Nr. 74
Reviews & comments
Elineloves
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- 24071 messages
- 3632 votes
Two years ago I saw 'The Experiment'. Last week I watched Das Experiment for the first time, only to throw in the review of The Experiment again last night. So I can't help but compare the two.
During the first review I was positively impressed with the remake, but now that I've seen the original I can say that I like this one better. The characters are better highlighted, I got to know them better (It also maybe helped that they were all strangers, instead of all those familiar faces) and the structure of the story was more fleshed out in the original. More time was taken, something I kept running into with the remake. The course of events was more realistic.
Tarek Fahd is also clearly a better protagonist. His romance could be stolen from me, but luckily that only takes up a small part. The relationships he establishes within the prison seem more natural, precisely because more time has been taken. You see his behavior change, seek boundaries and consciously sabotage things. This is also portrayed a lot more credibly than with the hippie in the remake.
The atmosphere is darker and more realistic. The German clamor works surprisingly well, a real added value for the film. Makes it authentic.
Finally, the ending... and happy that Das Experiment chose this ending. Much more powerful and satisfying than the end of the remake, which is almost ridiculous.
Better than the remake in every way. Glad to finally see the original.
Translated from Dutch · View original
IH88
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- 9761 messages
- 3190 votes
Das Experiment
Strong movie. I've seen many movies in recent years that took this experiment (ordinary people like guards and prisoners) as their starting point, but this German classic is still unrivaled. The anarchy and violence set in very quickly and if it's all credible I don't know, but it's fascinating to watch these "ordinary people" go one step further in their struggle and psychological warfare.
The acting of especially Bleibtrue, Berkel, Von Dohnányi and Eggert is fantastic, and the romantic subplot between Dora and Tarek was not an annoying interruption (which I kind of expected). The last part could have gone either way, but I can live with this bittersweet ending.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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