Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4238 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-10-23
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English, German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 108 minutes

Synopsis
Half brothers Michael (Christian Ulmen) and Bruno (Moritz Bleibtreu) might share the same biological mother, but they could not be more different in their natures. Michael, an introverted scientist, is so wrapped up in his research that he shies away from intimacy, while Bruno is a slave to his darkest sexual fantasies. When Michael's childhood sweetheart Annabelle (Franka Potente) walks back into his life, and Bruno hooks up with the kinky Christiane (Martina Gedeck), things seem to be looking up for the two brothers. But unlike the laws of science, there are no certainties in matters of the heart… Based on Michel Houellebecq's controversial bestselling novel ATOMISED, award-winning director Oskar Roehler's stark, striking film raises questions of biological evolution, love and fate.

Customer Reviews

Not a patch on the book
This movie is interesting for those fascinated by Houellebecq's written masterpiece. However, it all too quickly skipped over the key part at the end of the novel. Micheal is relegated to the minor part here, with Bruno having the lead role. Hence, the sex angle is overplayed (as you'd expect). Something of a missed opportunity here.

Death of love?
A good attempt to bring a difficult book onto the screen. It doesn't give rise to comfortable viewing, although I expect most people will have read `atomised' before coming to the film and therefore will know what to expect. Houellebecq excellence is in showing us how we really are, rather than glossing over the ugliness. He has given us a mirror to look at ourselves.

Modern society, with all its material progress has failed to provide stable relationships that most long for and the hope of 60's utopian ideals, have fallen by the wayside. The film doesn't have the scope or time to move beyond the central message of `atomised' and isn't as effective a medium at presenting the characters inner complexities. However there is still enough, to make it thoughtful and provocative.

It probably does too good a job, in representing the book. Where the book lacked tight structure and lyrical style, similarly the film lacks the images that would make it great. And like the novel it sometime falls into adolescent pretentiousness. Ultimately it overcomes these flaws as a film of ideas and a rare examination of a modern society which most people will sadly ignore in favour of escapism and entertainment.

Fairly random and uninteresting
I found this film rather dull, with a rambling plot that didn't seem to go anywhere. This was a shame as there are some great actors in it - Moritz Bleibtreu and Franka Potente from Run, Lola, Run, Martina Gedeck from The Lives of Others, and a cameo from the excellent Uwe Ochsenknecht. I guess you need to be into the book (or at least to have read it) in order to make any real sense of the film.

Towards the end, the storyline involving Martina Gedeck was the most touching part of the film, but as another reviewer mentioned it's very difficult to feel any empathy with or interest in the largely unappealing characters.