Aufdruck (2014) Online

In crisp Black and white with a brief color coda we get Mary Krasnoperova and Kira Mathis, sitting dismissing the people and locations they encounter and downing their too small cups of coffee and dragging on their too small cigarettes. If you stumble on this one, you wonder where it's going and whether there will be a pay off. Well there is but it's kind of slight.

Film maker Jaschar L Marktanner has bubbled up from the ranks of non pro German film makers to create a string of his own films of which this is the first. You've got to admire the determination with which he promotes his work.

With subtle yet crude humor, an atmospheric black and white cinematography and nothing much to say but plenty to reveal, "Label" is an artistic exercise that seems to take from Godard, Jarmusch and QT, without necessarily becoming a collage of their works to make a different point. A pleasant surprise, nicely photographed and with good acting.

Here's a film that allows us to see a lot more than just what presents: two young women at a restaurant talking about the SOB's of the world while drinking coffee, having a smoke, complaining about the waiter and stuff. BUT as the introduction gives us about the importance of pauses in a good conversation, this film actually makes us think about this exact part despite its reduced running time. Each pause in between dialogues are extremely important, and with that you can almost create a whole background about those two girls besides the whole difference between what they wear, how they act - visual contrast versus the inner aspects of both - and it's only in those pauses, just thinking about what they said to one another, or maybe something even more random than discussing aliens or anything else, is that you can actually see how apparently meaningful acts are important in our lives - and we usually don't pay much attention when we're talking to someone.

It's a lot like life. We all have, at some point, talks exactly like those, the kind of talk that only works with a group of acquaintances that know each other very well and everyone else from afar is shut outside trying to figure out the "eccentricity" of the group. Multi-task man behind camera is (who also as a cameo at the conclusion) Jaschar L Marktanner, in one of his earliest works, is a talent to be seen in more films to come. 7/10

AUFDRUCK (LABEL) is a German short film by Jaschar L Marktanner. First thing, the little note in the beginning is really nice. In less than 4 minutes, we see two young ladies drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes while complaining about some guy, a waitress, the coffee cup, and the cigarette, with an indifferent look on their faces. They look bored, killing time with coffee and cigarettes, but Pansen's behaviour is interesting. She didn't ask for another coffee when she finished, nor did she light the cigarette. But after all, they smiled at the waiter and even tipped. I started to feel that this is almost what we do every day: getting bored, grumbling about people and things around us while keeping a smile on. Can totally relate. In the end, it goes from b&w to colours, still the similar kind of conversation, just with stronger emotions. Anything could have happened before this, and anything could happen after this; there's plenty of space for imagination. All in all, a simple short film that reminds me of myself and people I've seen, and that makes me smile. Thanks to the crew!

...at least that's what the two women in this movie seem to think...if i think so about the movie? What a stupid question you son of a bi***!

...well, let's find out...

The director (and editor as he noted) of this movie asked me directly to review his little German short film, and so this is gonna be a quiet honest review, but just to give him some tips for the future...

So the movie is about two women in a bar talking about how shitty everything is, while maintaining the illusion that everything's fine on the outside, that's the film in the nutshell, and a nice little concept.

The thing about nice little concepts is, that you have to think big, at least technical. Because you just have a short amount of time to tell your story, it's really important that the few minutes are well visualized.

The movie is held in a black & white fullscreen-format, so very basic, seemingly to reflect on the black & white thinking of the two protagonists, or maybe to make it look more like one of many other German student flicks in the process...

Because, if the first wasn't the intention, at least your visual storytelling has to deliver, and well...it's basic.

Shot-Reverse-Shot dialogue with one total shot. (All three shots are a little awkwardly composed at times, which was slightly irritating, but not too big a deal)

It's a movie about two people talking, and that's a problem if you talk about a visual medium.

Like the great Alfred Hitchcock said (more or less) 7 decades ago: "Most movies today (!) are just photographs of people talking and nothing more..."

So we have a basic dialogue scene, with a basic look, and no visual storytelling...now it's supposed to be a comedy, and that genre is known for it's strong use of verbal gags, so the two most important questions are: "Is the dialogue funny?" and "Are the actors delivering the dialogue well?"

No, and Yes...

The dialogue isn't that funny, it's just full of swearing, which is used to make a point, and also (maybe) to make it more funny, which works fine, but is also the only thing that stands out, and having a comedy full of swearing and not much else, isn't that memorable nowadays...

The director choose to let me know, that the two protagonists of his film aren't that experienced, which is hopefully to let their good work stand out even more, instead of covering up the opposite, because that would mean a lack of trust in his lead actors, and i don't think that he meant it like that, because...

...both deliver their lines pretty well, and are fairly believable in their roles, most of all at the end. That being said they are playing caricatures, which is always a wise idea, when working with inexperienced actors.

So the dialogue isn't that funny, but the performances are good. Well then there is only one thing left to care about and that's...

...timing: The editing is as basic as the rest. It never underlines the little actions of the characters, or the timing of the sentences, but it's also not irritating, so not bad...

All in all a basic comedy, with a over reliance on dialogue, which is more vulgar than funny, and two pretty good leads...i would say the best thing about it is that it's not a waste of time, cause it wisely stops at the four minute mark...

No "cast of thousands" and no "three years in the making."

But what a funny little movie.

When a stranger sent me a link to this short, named "Label" in English, and asked my opinion, I was busy, editing some books for publication. But the request was polite and the film is short, so I took the time -- and now I've watched it three times!

Let me get out of the way my one complaint: I do not like the language - - and I don't mean the rather strange British translation, although, yes, it is flawed -- but the words coming out of the mouths of two very attractive young ladies.

But in this context, It Is Funny!

"Label," or "Aufdruck," is not so much funny for the, uh, well, "story," but for the perfect acting, the near-perfect directing and editing, and, of course, the context.

And, yes, the attractiveness of the two young women.

You might get a kick out of this and I do hope you will take a look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHxyMgDtPGw

"Aufdruck" is a 4-minute German-language short film from 2 years ago and the second (of so far 4) film(s) by writer and director Jaschar L. Marktanner. The film is with the exception of the very last scene in black-and-white and takes place at a restaurant where we listen to two women having a conversation while smoking and drinking coffee. By this description, you really should have understood by now that this is the director's homage to Jim Jarmusch's "Coffee and Cigarettes". I personally am not the biggest fan of these short films, otherwise I probably would have liked this one here even more. I feel the way that this film makes fun of the Sidos and Bushidos of this planet or in this case their female equivalents was done very tastefully and two more things I enjoyed here was the way the two main characters break the fourth wall at one point and also how this little film starts with a South Park like written introduction. The ending was something when I thought oh nice the new customers see these two girls for what they really are, but then we find out they are basically exactly the same. I am pretty sure that the waiter also insulted the girls afterward when he talked to his colleagues. Everybody does in here apparently. solid watch and I recommend it.

Jaschar L Marktanner's short film shot in gorgeous black and white suggests an outtake of Jim Jarmusch's COFFEE & CIGARETTES with two female friends hating on anyone and everyone with enough nicotine, caffeine and anomie for the average teatotaller to imbibe. At best an exercise in futility (which is life itself) at worst just a lot of vulgarity for no apparent reason.