Another half-remembered Wenders movie that I recall being intrigued by when I first saw it, again mainly due to the fact that it looks and feels so different to mainstream movies of the period.
Bruno Ganz is excellent in the lead role as a dying art framer who throws caution to the wind in becoming a reluctant assassin to provide for his family once he is gone. His quietly enigmatic performance is interesting to compare with Dennis Hopper as the titular American friend who does his usual surface level psycho act, all affectations and intensity.
There are lots of things to like about this film. The use of Hamburg as the location, in all it’s run down glory, the delayed build up to the murders that soak you in the fear and doubt of the character as he contemplates breaking an existential taboo in the face of his own demise and the whole off kilter approach to action scenes that make this film seem oddly prescient of the Bourne trilogy.
That said though, the whole thing doesn’t hang together that well and feels like the start of Wenders seduction by Hollywood as exemplified by the presence of his American star. It’s a decent enough film but compared to Wenders earlier masterworks, it’s a bit so so.