Horst in Translation ([email protected]) If you know a bit about German cinema, you will agree that the 5-year-old "Hell" is not really a film you'd expect to come from Germany. Science-fiction is a rarity in the German-speaking countries, horror and thriller not so much though. The bravery to take on new areas, however, is the only thumbs-up I can give writer and director Tim Fehlbaum here. This is his second full feature film and easily his most known work so far. Eidinger, Herzsprung, Winkler and Erceg are somewhat known in Germany at least and this may be the reason why. It certainly is not the quality of this film. I always thought Hannah Herzsprung was a pretty weak actress, mediocre at best, but sometimes downright bad. Neither the script nor the co-stars are helping much in this post-apocalyptic drama. This is especially disappointing as the setting offers the possibility of a truly atmospheric film. It was not achieved. In the end, I can only say that i am glad the movie does not run for 90 minutes even and if you cut 6-7 minutes of credits, it's really short. This does not have to be negative. It means a film is more essential like that and there is an uncountable number of really good films out there which are very much helped by a low runtime. This is not one of them sadly. The acting, the story and the overall outcome are all fairly underwhelming. Thumbs down and I do not recommend the watch. No idea why this movie scored so much awards attention, even at really prestigious ceremonies like the German Film Awards. I guess, for some people being different means being good. But for you it shouldn't Only worth a watch if you really love the genre. Or then you may be even more disappointed. Better stay away.

jlthornb51 Masterful and chilling, Hell is a film that was tragically overlooked when first released. Despite winning the Fantasporto award and being acclaimed at several festivals, it deserved a wider and more appreciative audience. The director has certainly embraced the style of the great German auteurs of silent and early sound film and made their genius his own. In his hands, the cast gives performances that are virtually breathtaking. Working within a minimal budget with imagination and skill, the crew make the situation seem all too real. One of the better films to come out of Germany in the last few years, do not deny yourself the incredible experience that is Hell.

thekarmicnomad No matter what the language I do love a post apocalyptic thriller.This has an excellent start, and kept my interest right up to the credits. The backdrop is set very efficiently in the first few minutes of the opening scene, where we meet the main characters.The characters are intriguing (and as it turns out) quite believable.As the title may suggest this particular post apocalyptic world is fairly hazardous (aren't they always) and there is a good degree of tension as the characters try to deal with a hostile environment, and each other.Great acting, no special effects. We aren't treated to a deserted Berlin sequence but the settings in the countryside are simple and professionally handled - you can almost taste the dust.The only two gripes I have with the film is about a quarter of it is shot in darkness which I don't approve of, and I wanted the action to last a bit longer.If you are a fan of post apocalyptic movies then this is a must see

Theo Robertson A German post apocalypse movie ? Last time I saw something resembling one of those movies was Wim Wender's UNTIL THE END OF THE WORLD . You remember that don't you ? The world ends in three hours and everyone stands around discussing the human condition in a film so dull , pretentious and talkative you'll be thinking that Michael Bay is perhaps a misunderstood Orson Welles in comparison so I went in to HELL with some trepidation . No need because whatever its faults HELL is a unpretentious mainstream international horror movie that one rarely sees coming out of Germany That said it is heavily flawed and ill thought out . The premise involves solar flares that has scorched the Earth destroying civilization and making it impossible to stay out in the sunlight for any length of time while at the same time evaporating the reservoirs and food chain . Or has it ? This is the major flaw of the film it's never consistently explained what effect this has on individuals or human society . A character claims two hours exposure to the sun light is near fatal but this scenario collapses when given serious thought . Early in the film two characters haggle over swapping water for petrol and one character replies to the other he'd get more " in a city " . So cities still exist in this post apocalyptic world ? The logic behind the plotting revolves around the idea there will be water in the mountains and if you suspend disbelief for long enough you can perhaps see the logic in this to a degree but too often the storytelling draws attention to the ludicrous nature of the plot . The reality is human beings would die without water in three days . If the taps in the cities stopped working the human race would almost certainly die out before people would consider cannibalism to survive. It's also illogical to assume that only a handful of people have come up with the bright idea to head to the mountains . This is what's known as contrived plotting and HELL is full of these contrived plot turns Some people have referred to this movie as " A German version of THE ROAD " . They're right to a degree but I was also constantly reminded of 28 DAYS LATER . The original premise of the solar flares becomes quickly forgotten the same as the infected become forgotten about in Boyle's film as both films share a common ground of " Would a woman prostitute herself in unpleasant circumstances to simply survive ? " . HELL doesn't really explore this idea too much as it's trying to be a commercial horror movie and to be fair for a low budget horror from Europe it did manage to keep this audience member involved in this segment . Like 28 DAYS LATER it does often feel like its two films stuck together In summary HELL is an uneven mixture of good and bad . One can't help thinking the producers had two films . One film featuring civilization collapsing due to solar flares and another featuring a backwoods brutality tale featuring mountain cannibals and merging the two to come up with one unsatisfactory movie . If you're a fan of the horror genre you'll like it and it's good to see a German film that doesn't feature either war guilt or introspective pretentious brooding . But like so many other horror films you also can't help noticing how dumb situations and characters in this genre can be