kosmasp
This is the third movie based on some very popular books in Germany. The humor in it is very dry and while I haven't read the books I have seen the other movies. And this is a neat-less continuation of the characters we already established in the other movies. So while it's not necessary to watch or know the other films, it does help identifying the characters a lot easier and quicker.The spoken dialect is from Bayern so some Germans may have problems getting a couple of things, but it's more than understandable. There are so many things going on, that this time around there is not as much time to spend with the odd side characters. But there's still some fun we can have with them. It's funny, it's sometimes a bit mean, but always good hearted. And really well produced ... can't wait for Part 4 and 5 (already announced, also based on the books from the same woman and the same characters).
Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de)
"Schweinskopf al dente" is already the third installment of the crime comedy film series starring Sebastian Bezzel as Franz Eberhofer. This one came out last year and runs for slightly over 90 minutes. The director is once again Ed Herzog and he is also one of the several people adapting Rita Falk's novel for the screen here. The big screen, that is and this is exactly where this movie belongs. I think it is safe to say that if you enjoyed the previous two films, then you will also appreciate this one here. The comedy is really similar in all of these and while there are some moments and sequences that did not work out completely, I must say I enjoyed it too overall. This time, Ebehofer has to deal with his girlfriend's plans to go to Italy, loud and annoying music, Birkenberger's usual shenanigans and last but not least a psychopath doctor who manages to flee during a prisoner transport. The latter is played convincingly scary by Gregor Bloéb and the Russian Roulette scenes are certainly edge-of-seat material. Bloéb is one of several Austrian influences on this Bavarian-themed movie. Another would be Simon Schwarz, who is otherwise mostly known for co-starring next to Hader in the Brenner movies. A mix of comedy and crime seems to be his strength as he is fun to watch in both film series.Now back to this one here. The comedy makes it worth watching and the crime aspect (thank's to Bloéb) is very interesting here too. The outcome of these films is something all filmmakers should try to achieve when they are going for lighter crime films. The humor is sometimes really dark and it definitely remembered me of the Brenner films I mentioned previously already. If you like these, check out this film series here. The title is once again a (not so) culinary revelation like in the previous 2 and the pig head included in here is a reference to the Godfather films that is also picked up on one occasions directly (horse head). There are more references about other pretty good films and you will recognize them if you are a movie buff. One would be "No Country for Old Men" and Bloéb sometimes reminded me in terms of character and mannerisms as a bit of a Middle European Chigurh. Okay, enough now. I am glad to see a forth film is already in the making and it will come out later in 2017. I'll make sure to check that one out as well and I hope it will be on the same level of quality like this one here. I recommend checking it out.
Karl Self
So far I've read all the books and seen all the movies, and enjoyed all of them. Franz Eberhofer (Sebastian Bezzel) is the affable village cop ("Dorfsheriff") from the Bavarian boondocks who gets even the most gruesome cases solved by bending a few rules while eating well, drinking hard and - - occasionally successfully -- wooing village heartthrob Susi (Lisa Potthoff). Who has this time eloped to Italy with her Latin lover, which necessitates Franz -- accompanied by half of the village -- to pursue her lago di Garda. On the 9-to-5 side of things, a Hannibal Lecter- like psychopath has escaped and threatens Franz's boss Moratschek (Sigi Zimmerschied) by depositing a bloody pig's head on his bed. In turn, Moratschek moves in with Franz and his stoner dad for protection; to his horror, they soon form a sort of old fart commune.The crime story is a bit on the thin side this time, especially as the film reveals that the psychopath manages to fake his death halfway through the story, rather than letting us believe that he is actually out of the picture. So while Franz is chasing Susi in Italy, it's clear that the killer is about to resurface. So when he does, it's no surprise. Even worse, when he holds Franz and his "he-wife" Rudi (Simon Schwarz) at gunpoint, they manage to solve the situation by - - wait for it -- offering him a slice of drug-infused pizza, which he, for no reason other than to wrap up the story, readily accepts.But apart from these minor gripes, Franz Eberhofer delivers great entertainment once again.