| Der WiXXer | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Tobi Baumann |
| Produced by | Christian Becker David Groenewold Anita Schneider |
| Written by | Oliver Kalkofe Oliver Welke Bastian Pastewka |
| Starring | Oliver Kalkofe Bastian Pastewka Tanja Wenzel Olli Dittrich Anke Engelke Thomas Fritsch Christoph Maria Herbst Wolfgang Völz |
| Music by | Andreas Grimm |
| Cinematography | Gerhard Schirlo |
| Editing by | Ueli Christen Marco Pav D'Auria |
| Studio | Rat Pack Filmproduktion |
| Distributed by | Falcom Media |
| Release date(s) | May 20, 2004 |
| Running time | 85 minutes |
| Language | German |
Der WiXXer (English: The Trixxer, literally The Wanker) is a 2004 German parody of crime films based on works by Edgar Wallace, especially the film Der Hexer. It was directed by Tobi Baumann and written by Oliver Kalkofe, Oliver Welke and Bastian Pastewka. It is the first film in a trilogy.
The film is about two policemen, Inspector Very Long (Pastewka) and Chief Inspector Even Longer (Kalkofe) who must find the Wixxer, a gangster who wants to take over London's crime world.
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The film begins at BlackWhite castle, one of the last castles in black & white located in the United Kingdom. Residing there is the Earl of Cockwood (Thomas Fritsch), a notorious gangster. At some point, a tourist couple from Bitterfeld gets lost in the woods and witness a murder: the Monk with the Whip gets overrun by a truck. At the wheel: The Wixxer, an evil gangster who wears a skull mask and wants to take over Londons crime scene. To do that he arranges for the death of many of the current gangsters.
Scotland Yard sends its - allegedly - best man, Chief Inspector Even Longer. Since the Wixxer killed Even Longer's partner Rather Short (Thomas Heinze), a new partner is assigned: Very Long. They start to investigate and suspect the Earl of Cockwood. However, the Earl (who officially raises pugs and inofficially smuggles girl groups, amongst other things) is affected by the Wixxer's ambitions as well.
Their investigations bring the two inspectors back to London where they meet the dubious Harry Smeerlap (Lars Rudolph) and his men, who work for Cockwood. Smeerlap tries to conceal his racketeerings, but Very Long and Even Longer can finally arrest him. At the end they are able to finally identify the Wixxer: it is none other than Rather Short who killed the original Wixxer and assumed his identity.
The film is based on a radio play that Oliver Kalkofe (together with Oliver Welke) performed in the 1990s during his time as a radio moderator at radio ffn.
The film was shot mostly in the Czech Republik, i.e. in Hostivar studios, the Kladnice mine and around Prague.
Three actors (Grit Böttcher as a waitress, Eva Ebner as Miss Drycunt and Wolfgang Völz as Sir John) who appear in this film, also appeared in some role in the original Wallace films made in the 60s. Joachim Fuchsberger was approached for a role but, after hearing the title, disgustedly declined. However, after seeing the film on DVD, he agreed to appear in the sequel, Neues vom WiXXer.
The title song The Wizard was performed by Right Said Fred and Anke Engelke (as her character Doris Dubinsky). The Wizard was originally performed by Madness of which Kalkofe is a big fan.
The movie premiered on May 10, 2004 in Munich and was released on May 20, 2004. On its opening weekend, it grossed approximately $4,112,430.[1] The film ended its theatrical run with approx. 1,9 million viewers.[2]
The score by Andreas Grimm was awarded in the Best Music category at the 2005 German Film Critics Association Awards.[3]