Der Hammermörder

Based on a true story that happened around 1985 in Stuttgart, Germany, the present movie is characterized by dissolving the psychological state of the robber and killer into action. Although hardly any "hard-core" murder scenes are shown, the psychological effects that the director achieves, are subcutaneous. Besides the story itself, this TV-movie can serve as an example about the present method in Germany of making TV-movies between the extremes of over-stylized feature films on the one side and purely action-driven TV-series ("Tatort") on the other side.

However, the deepest motives of the culprit remain mostly in the dark. We see him often visiting the grave of his little daughter that had "so much to suffer". But why did she suffer? Is it really convincing that we are to believe that Rohloff's shopping binges, his attempts to show even his family and closest friends a false facade, are simply to be interpreted as a surrogate action? Did a deeper reason not already lie in Rohloff's personality when he decided to become a policeman? It is true that his wife has a big impact on the crimes Ruhloff is doing, but he also abuses her for the might he gets in his house whenever he brings money from his robberies. Thus, is he not from his beginnings a heavily disturbed person incapable of dealing with might? His caring of his children appears more as a chumming up in order to have children on his side when the next attack from his wife comes.