# Run Lola Run (spoilers)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [January 23, 2005, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286 "2005-01-23T19:58:55Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/1 "2005-01-23T19:58:55Z")

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Taking advantage of the four-year-old napping I took the time to watch Run Lola Run. I feel someone confident that I’m one of the very few people in Marietta, OH to have seen this.

Interesting film. I can’t decide whether it was a morality play (all goes well when she colors within the lines) or just sort of amoralistic.

I kept thinking to myself, “This is terrible. Manni and Lola are low-life hoods. I shouldn’t be so involved with them.” But I was. The performance of the kid who plays Lola is riveting. Just the effort she imports into the film makes me want to cheer her on. Although my opinion of her boyfriend remains…the sooner he’s out of the picture the happier she’ll be.

But we all don’t make good choices all the time, do we?

And I didn’t realize that, in iteration three, the man in the ambulance was the security guard at the bank until I saw it mentioned here in an old thread. Hrm.

Anyone else see this one? The only time I ever get to watch anything remotely outside the norm is nap-time. God bless nap time.

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**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/2 "2005-01-23T20:02:57Z")

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I like this one quite a bit. It’s got a fun energy that makes the time pass quickly, for me.

If you like Lola (Franka Potente), you can see her in “The Bourne Identity”, “The Bourne Supremacy”, and “Blow”. She speaks English in all of them, too!

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**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/3 "2005-01-23T20:08:42Z")

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She’s also in a fairly nasty horror film due out here soon, _Creep_.

I really enjoyed this film. The music video techniques were a little gimmicky after a while, but that may just be because they’re far more common now.

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**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/4 "2005-01-23T20:10:42Z")

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This film reminded me of _Repo Man_ and _Night of the Comet_. I got caught up in the energy and that was it. Stands up well on rewatching as well.

Regards,  
Shodan

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**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/5 "2005-01-23T20:16:06Z")

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Brilliant movie, though it does play like a really long music video. 🙂

I see the story protraying life as a video game – how you can die, return to a save point, and try again. (Sometimes I think life really does work like that, but we only remember that we play through without restarting – the “failed” threads are only noticed through sensations like deja-vu, premonitions, etc. Obviously, some of us are better at the “game” than others…which explains how the Republicans got elected…)

There is speculation that the security guard is Lola’s real father. An argument can be made either way.

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**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/6 "2005-01-23T20:23:27Z")

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[Run Lola Run](http://www.sonypictures.com/classics/runlolarun/runlolarun.html) is a German movie made in 1998, originally titled, “Lola Rennt”. It was a BIG hit in my part of Europe. Surprisingly, for a relatively low budget German movie.  
It must have been the “what if”-factor. What if you walk a little slower, and don’t bump into person X and don’t miss the subway on which you would have met the love of your life etcetera etcetera. The same theme was central to the movie “Sliding Doors” starring Gwyneth Paltrow).  
Then again, it might also have been the energy in the movie. Anyway, I liked it very much. That Manni was such a lowlife made Lola’s love for him even more moving.

The same director later made another movie with Franka Potente (Lola), “the Warrior and the Empress” (Der Krieger und die Kaiserin). I can also recommend that one.

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**Author:** ![Strinka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/strinka/32/512_2.png) [@Strinka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strinka)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/7 "2005-01-23T20:31:19Z")

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I really liked Run Lola Run. Did you see it in English or German? I think it’s better in German.

Why couldn’t you watch this while your kid is awake?

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**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/8 "2005-01-23T20:38:51Z")

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Wow, for some reason (not the OP’s fault) I just could not parse that first sentence. I kept taking it to mean that the OP had take a four year long nap or something. Anyway, I liked the movie too. Very music video, which was good, except I really, really disliked the part at the end where she screamed and the roulette ball stopped in the right place. It was a lot of fun to watch though.

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**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/9 "2005-01-23T20:39:37Z")

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I have to admit, I’d never fully grapsed the literal significance of the phrase “cuckolded” until seeing this movie, or at least reading its English subtitles.

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**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/10 "2005-01-23T20:41:55Z")

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Great movie. A bit gimmicky in places, but overall a great sense of energy and a compelling little story.

And Franka Potente is great.

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**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/11 "2005-01-23T20:50:24Z")

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I saw it in German with English subtitles.

I do think the best thing was the shot in the casino with the camera mounted on the roulette wheel. The numbers stand still while everything else revolves really gripped me.

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**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/12 "2005-01-23T21:28:47Z")

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> [@Maastricht](#):
>
> The same director later made another movie with Franka Potente (Lola), “the Warrior and the Empress” (Der Krieger und die Kaiserin). I can also recommend that one.

That is a fantastic movie, although it’s a bit more intense.

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**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/13 "2005-01-23T21:51:02Z")

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Moritz Bleibtreu, who played Manni, can also be seen in _Das Experiment_, among other things.

Meaningless anecdote: When I first saw this movie, I mentioned to a German friend of mine that Manni didn’t look German to me, and wondered what his nationality was. She replied no, he’s very typically German looking. Huh, you learn something new every day.

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**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2005, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/14 "2005-01-23T22:30:16Z")

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Jonathan Chance writes:

\> I feel someone confident that I’m one of the very few people in Marietta, OH to  
\> have seen this.

Well, there’s my niece, a freshman at Marietta College. I remember that she was among the family group several years ago when we, at one of our get-togethers, happened to watch a videotape of _Run, Lola, Run_. In any case, I would say the film is better known than you think.

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**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2005, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/15 "2005-01-24T01:25:26Z")

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I just finished watching this on Netflix Friday afternoon and really enjoyed it although I didn’t care for the screaming thing. What the hell was the point of that? I wanted to slap her every time she did it.

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**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2005, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/16 "2005-01-24T01:37:25Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> In any case, I would say the film is better known than you think.

It was mentioned on VH1’s second I Love the 90’s thing, which really surprised me, since I didn’t hear about it 'til my first year of college ('02) and I tend to keep up on movies.

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**Author:** ![LordVor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90ced4/32.png) [@LordVor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LordVor)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2005, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/17 "2005-01-24T04:43:49Z")

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I hadn’t been in on previous discussions of this movie…has anybody else ever had the feeling that the whole look and feel of season 1 of Alias was stolen directly from this movie? Every episode, the pseudo-techno music would pipe up, JG would start moving faster, and I’d scream “Run Sydney, Run!” at the tv screen.

-lv

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**Author:** ![gfloyd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d2c977/32.png) [@gfloyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gfloyd)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2005, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/18 "2005-01-24T05:26:43Z")

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I really liked it. I should rent it again. And ick, they doubed if? I hate that. I watch movies in the language they were made in with subtitles, unless I’m supposed to take notes on them, then I just want to cry.

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**Author:** ![MidnightRadio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@MidnightRadio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MidnightRadio)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2005, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/19 "2005-01-24T06:27:05Z")

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Franka Potente was also in _Anatomie_, which was pretty good.

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**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2005, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286/20 "2005-01-24T11:46:07Z")

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Franka Potente is also the “singer” for the song that’s playing when she’s running, “I wish…”, which she helped write.

> [@levdrakon](#):
>
> Meaningless anecdote: When I first saw this movie, I mentioned to a German friend of mine that Manni didn’t look German to me, and wondered what his nationality was. She replied no, he’s very typically German looking. Huh, you learn something new every day.

For some reason that I can’t recall, I think he might also be ethnically a bit Polish, maybe from that between Germany and Poland that changes borders every so often.

[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-lola-run-spoilers/286286.md?page=2)
