Riveting action, dynamic sound track, and brilliant editing had me hooked from the first frame.
10/10
Author: ecto-3 from San Diego, CA
27 June 1999

The concepts are simple. How do our actions affect our own lives, as well as those whom we touch? What part do chance and random events play in determining an outcome? Can we select a different result by making different choices? In short, what is reality? Well, maybe it isn't all that simple, but while others have plowed these same fertile fields, as recently as the film "Go", and also in "The Music of Chance", based on Paul Auster's novel, no one has dealt with such cosmic existential questions with more brilliant originality, fast paced action, and a pulsing score than in this German cinematic masterpiece.

In a compact ninety minutes, combining snips of animation, cinema verité, quirky characters, situations and dialogue, and a pace that makes most music videos look like they've been filmed in slow motion, three versions of the same story sequence unfold, and each time conclude with a jolting finish that defies convention, and keeps the viewer guessing until the final frame.This is one of those rare cinematic events that is entertaining, satisfying, and absorbing, as well as flawlessly acted, staged, edited, produced and directed. I thought that Lola ran her race with flair and style, and left all others way behind in the dust.

Best German suspense and action film ever made
10/10
Author: Marcel Bülles (marcel.buelles@uni-koeln.de) from Cologne, Germany
17 August 1998

'Lola rennt' by Tom Twyker is the final step for German film-making towards a professionality and technical perfection that used to be Hollywood's alone.

80 mins. of brilliantly shot action will keep the viewer enthralled with the love story of Manni and Lola who have to fight against time: 20 mins. to be exact. It is 11.40 a.m. and Manni who is into smuggling diamonds across Eastern European borders has to turn over 100.000 DM at 12 o'clock sharp to Ronni, a 'gangster' par excellence, who would kill anyone for stealing a bottle of beer from him.

Unfortunately, Manni forgot the money in the tram and is now more desperate than ever. He calls the one person who has always taken care of him: the love of his life, Lola. She asks Manni to wait for her as he is going to rob the 100.000 DM from one the shops in town as he knows that turning up at Ronni's without the money would be his immediate death. Lola starts running immediately thinking of a million different ways how to help the man who is the most important person in her life and she runs and runs.....

The quality of cuts and camera shots, innovative techniques at the top of modern filming practically unknown to German viewers up to now will hopefully make 'Lola rennt' a blockbuster in the cinemas as it fully deserves it.Like 'Der Himmel über Berlin' (City of Angels', Ryan, Cage') and 'Bandits' this film is surely to be copied by Hollywood. A symbol of the emerging new strength and innovative qualities of German film-making. You HAVE to see it :))

The world-premier screening on 15th August, Cologne, Germany at the chocolate-museum Open-Air-Cinema had a 1,000-strong audience screaming and laughing, breaking into applause on several scenes as the story unfolded. The director and the actors and actresses were present and will have been delighted by the spontaneous reactions of the audience proving this film to be one modern masterpiece of film-making.

See Lola run
10/10
Author: jotix100 from New York
13 July 2005

Tom Tykwer's clever "Run Lola Run" showed up on cable the other day. We had seen it when it first came out, and frankly, watching it for a second time, it seemed even better than the last time. Mr Tykwer made an excellent impression with this film, which introduced us to this talented director. Having seen "Heaven", and "True", "Lola rennt" is by far a superior effort from Mr. Tykwer.

The premise of the film is a clever one. Lola, in twenty minutes, must solve the mystery in which she is drawn into. At each of this situations, Lola shows great resources about how to help her petty criminal boyfriend, who has lost 100,000 DM, and now must account for the missing money.Franka Potente is the main reason why this movie works the way it does. She is almost like the cartoon character one sees in the opening credits.

Lola, is larger than life, and shows she can do anything she wants because of her resolve. Ms. Potente brings freshness to the role and she totally captivates the viewer in her no-nonsense approach to life, in general. The supporting cast does good work under Mr. Tykwer's direction.It's a puzzle why Hollywood hasn't made an attempt to remake this film, since the Americans are obsessed with redoing material like "Run Lola Run". Let's hope they don't try!

Right place at the wrong time or wrong place at the right time?

Author: chemingineer from Mumbai, India
27 February 2001

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

The film has an unusual format in that it presents three versions of a twenty-minute episode. But unlike Kurosawa's RASHOMON these are not different perspectives of the same incident by different eyes. Instead it offers 'It could have been this way, but for…. or if only…' scenarios. The film thus attempts to define what people loosely refer to as the luck factor. Luck, the film tries to say is being at the right place at the right time or even the wrong place at the wrong time. Or it could be the right place at the wrong time, or is it the wrong place at the right time. It is this clever scripting around the space-time permutation, that makes this film such a delight to watch.

The scenario, in which the young lovers emerge triumphant and richer, makes out a strong case for being proactive and for taking risk. It is also amusing to see how wrong conclusions can be drawn from partial information. But the film offers more than an interesting case study for management students. Cinema buffs would notice that time compression, which is so common in film idiom is not resorted to…. the action is nearly in true time. The quicksilver editing and the pulsating background score embellish Lola's running and make sure that the repetitions do not get jarring. The film is an unalloyed delight to the mind and the senses.