American Friend, The (1977)

Director Wim Wenders – one of the wunderkinder of the new German cinema – adapted this psychological thriller from the novel Ripley’s Game by Patricia Highsmith, one of a number of novels about the freebooting American hustler Tom Ripley and his shenanigans in international crime.

While marketing forged paintings in Hamburg, Ripley (Dennis Hopper in excellent form fresh from shooting on Apocalypse Now) meets Jonathan Zimmerman (Bruno Ganz), a decent, gentle picture framer innocently involved in the deal, who believes he is dying of a rare blood disease.

Approached by Frenchman Raoul Minot (Gérard Blain), who is anxious to find a non-professional assassin to carry out a highly-paid killing, Ripley suggests Jonathan, since the dying man will surely take drastic measures to secure financial security for his wife (Lisa Kreuzer, the director’s wife) and child.

With deeply conflicted emotions, Zimmerman kills a member of another underground art dealing organisation in the Paris Metro but is then asked to make another hit. Zimmerman is about to bungle the second hit (on a Munich-bound train) when Ripley turns up and helps him complete the dirty deed.

This latest killing launches a retaliation from other underworld figures and sets in motion a fast-paved 9But long and involved) conclusion to the film in which Zimmerman turns on Ripley despite his friendship to the German.

Not satisfied with a  simple murder-thriller, Wenders thoroughly explores the neuroses of both Zimmerman and Ripley.

Tom Ripley
Dennis Hopper
Jonathan Zimmerman
Bruno Ganz
Marianne Zimmerman
Lisa Kreuzer
Raoul Minot
Gérard Blain
‘Derwatt’ Prokasch
Nicholas Ray
The American
Samuel Fuller
Marcangelo
Peter Lilienthal
Igraham
Daniel Schmid
Arzt in Paris
Sandy Whitelaw
Freundlicher Mann
Jean Eustache
Rodolphe
Lou Castel
Daniel
Andreas Dedecke
Allan Winter
David Blue
Auktionator
Stefan Lennert
Gantner
Rudolf Schündler
Alte Dame
Gerty Molzen
Dr Gabriel
Heinz Joachim Klein
Herr im Zug
Heinrich Marmann
Angie
Satya De La Manitou
Lippo
Axel Schiessler
Schaffner
Adolf Hansen
Mona
Rosemarie Heinikel

Director
Wim Wenders