The American Friend
1977 · Movie · NR · 125 min · ★ 7.1 · 85% critics
A small-time art dealer with a shady side crosses paths with a quiet family man in Hamburg. When criminals come calling, they exploit the man’s failing health and financial worries, pushing him into a dangerous job that pulls him across borders and into an uneasy partnership built on pressure and mistrust.
Based on Ripley's Game
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Details
- Original title
- Der amerikanische Freund
- Years
- 1977
- Release date
- 1977-06-24
- Language
- German
- Rated
- NR
- Runtime
- 125 min
- Critic score
- 85/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.1/10 (441 votes)
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want a slow-burn crime story with paranoia, moral pressure, and an offbeat friendship, closer in mood to Purple Noon; Not for you if you need brisk pacing and clear, tidy plotting.
Pros: tense set pieces; moody, brooding vibe; strong lead performances | Cons: slow pace; hard-to-buy premise; story feels uneven
Themes
- dying and death
- new york city
- friendship
- husband wife relationship
- paris, france
- based on novel or book
- hitman
- munich, germany
- male friendship
- terminal illness
- leukemia
- dying man
- +9 more
Awards & recognition
- International Submission to the Academy Awards · 1978 · nominated
Cast & crew
Dennis Hopper
as Tom Ripley
Bruno Ganz
as Jonathan Zimmermann
Lisa Kreuzer
as Marianne Zimmermann
Gérard Blain
as Raoul Minot
Nicholas Ray
as Derwatt
Samuel Fuller
as The American
Peter Lilienthal
as Marcangelo
Daniel Schmid
as Igraham
Sandy Whitelaw
as Doctor in Paris
Jean Eustache
as Friendly Man
Directed by Wim Wenders