Spieler (1990)
Release Year: 1990
Nation: Germany
Alternative Title: The Gamblers
Director: Dominik Graf
Writer: Christoph Fromm
Production & Genre
Producer: producer: ZDF: Martin Büttner
executive producer: Friederike Eder-Thomas
producer: Michael Hild, Günter Rohrbach
line producer: Dieter Minx
Companies: Bavaria Film, ZDF
Genre: Comedy
Budget: N/A
Awards & Similar
Awards:
Similar: N/A
Keywords
Keywords: female nudity, gambling, love
Story
Jojo was counting on his inheritance from a rich uncle to pay off his gambling debts, but the old man played a dirty trick on him, giving him custody of an oversized dog, and leaving the real cash in the hands of one of his neices. His comfortable fantasy of future solvency has been sorely tried; to restore it, he begins to try wooing his cousin Kathrin (the woman with the loot). However, as things progress, he finds himself actually falling for her, which is perhaps the only really decent thing that he's done in his adult life. When he and a gambling buddy take Kathrin on a jaunt to the south of France, things get pretty dicey when a corrupt cop comes onto the scene. In this romantic thriller, only one will survive.
Summary
Jojo (Peter Lohmeyer) is a compulsive and perpetually broke gambler living on the fringes of Munich. When his wealthy aunt dies, he expects a significant inheritance but is left only with a large dog, while the substantial fortune goes to his beautiful and innocent cousin, Kathrin (Anica Dobra), who has been living in a convent. Jojo initially attempts to seduce Kathrin to gain access to her money, successfully gambling away her 20,000 Mark inheritance.
However, what starts as a predatory scheme evolves into an intense amour fou as Jojo finds himself genuinely falling in love with her. Together with Jojo’s friend Tom, the pair manages to win the money back, only to have it seized by a corrupt police officer. Their desperate situation forces them on a flight to the Côte d'Azur in Southern France. In the casinos of the French Riviera, they embark on a high-stakes gambling streak while being pursued by the authorities. The journey descends into tragedy when a shootout leads to Tom's death and Jojo’s ultimate self-destruction, leaving a pregnant Kathrin alone to face a future shaped by the fleeting luck of their past.
