On its 25th anniversary’s rerelease in 2024, German director Tom Tykwer’s film “Run Lola Run” is still wonderfully fresh and exciting. His was a very novel way of film story-telling using the video game format as concept in 1998).
Lola ( Franka Potente) with a “Skittles-red” shock of hair, tank-top, torn jeans, and heavy boots, answers her boyfriend Manni’s ( Moritz Bleibtreu) call for help from a phone booth in the middle of Berlin. The two-bit criminal has just lost a bag of money, payment for loot, left behind on a streetcar when he tries to avoid getting caught for riding without a ticket. Unfortunately, he has only twenty minutes left to hand over the 100,000 marks to gangster-boss Ronnie ( Heino Ferch). Lola agrees to help Mannie for big consequences and finds herself caught up in the run for their lives.
After some rapid thinking, Lola starts to run to Manni’s aid. As she leaves the apartment and storms down the staircase, writer and director of the film Tom Tykwer switches to a Lola-cartoon. It’s a smart idea that works. Turning back to live action we find Potente’s Lola breathless as she sprints through the city’s streets. The soundtrack is a steady beat of Tykwer lyrics to percussion. Lola’s goal with every step: to get the money, and save a life! The steady rhythm starts with a giant clock. It sets the movie’s pace like a timer for the game.
Be sure to pay attention to the prolog as it tells us there are rules – and as a soccer ball is kicked in the air the theme “After the game is before the game, (S. Herberger) sets the scene. A watchman says: “The ball is round, (the) game is 90 minutes. …that much is clear! “
And so it continues as Lola, in her run through town, crosses paths with a number of people. In snapshot manner, Tykwer gives glimpses of what their fate is that’s decided by one moment. Our focus is on the action, how the story will play out for Lola. We are hoping for a “ win”. The clock hits the twenty minute mark, and the game must end. But then, amazingly, and to everyone’s delight, Lola says “ no” and gets another chance.
Lola and Manni, a bit like Bonnie and Clyde, are playing a game of chance. Their personalities match today’s on-the-edge generation well. And Lola’s piercing scream shows she is the master of this game. Tykwer’s Berlin is every (big) city, where the established society, represented by Lola’s middle class parents ( Herbert Knaup, Ute Lobosch) play their own games (breaking established rules) and as ever, dismiss the next generation for their rebellious and defiant behavior.
You can stream Run Lola Run on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Fandango at Home, Roku, Google Play Movies, and Vudu. You can also rent or purchase it on these platforms: