REVANCHE — ★★★ — Johannes Krisch, Ursula Strauss, Andreas Lust; with English subtitles (European and Russian dialects); not rated, probable R (nudity, sex, violence, vulgarity, drugs, profanity, slurs); Broadway Centre
"Revanche" isn't exactly what you'd call a wholesome or a particularly uplifting movie.
In fact, parts of this European thriller are so gritty and grimy that you may feel like you need to take a shower after seeing it.
But it's undeniably effective and pretty engrossing. And there's something to be said for the unconventional way it sucks viewers in.
European television actor Johannes Krisch stars as Alex, a small-scale career criminal who's trying to go straight.
He's hoping to get far away from Europe and take his much-younger girlfriend, Tamara (Irina Potapenko), with him.
But to do so, he needs cash. So he plans a bank robbery, which, unfortunately for him, goes horribly awry.
Alex is barely able to get away, and decides to hide out with his grandfather (Johannes Thanheiser).
And as it turns out, one of his new neighbors is Robert (Andreas Lust), the cop he holds responsible for his current predicament.
You may think you know where the film is going next — the film's title translates to "Revenge," after all. But screenwriter/director Gotz Spielmann's tale takes some swerves and turns on its expected march to confrontation.
It also features some pretty frank and graphic sexual material, which will turn off more than a few viewers.
Still, the cast is very good. Krisch, who bears a striking resemblance to Scottish character actor Robert Carlyle, makes us care more about his character than we probably should.
His intensity is matched by Ursula Strauss, who plays the wife of the guilt-ridden policeman.
And in support, Thanheiser steals scenes as the supposedly addled grandfather. (As played by the Austrian veteran, he clearly knows a lot more than anyone thinks.)
"Revanche" is not rated but would probably receive an R for full female and male nudity, simulated sex and other sexual contact, some strong violent content (gunplay and shootings, vehicular mayhem), crude sexual language (profanity and vulgar references), drug content and references (narcotics), and derogatory language and slurs. Running time: 117 minutes.
e-mail: jeff@desnews.com