Nekromantik 2

Released by: Barrel Entertainment
Released on: 6/10/2003
Director: Jorg Buttgereit
Cast: Lena Braun, Monika M, Mark Reeder,
Year: 1991
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The Movie:

German director Jorg Buttgereit follows up his cult classic from 1987 with this low budget follow up, Nekromantik 2 - Return Of The Loving Dead. While the film doesn't move as quickly as the first entry, it does reflect a more mature side of Buttgereit's directorial ability and sports slightly better production values and special effects.
The story starts right where the first film left off, and in fact, after a quick quote from Ted Bundy appears on screen (“I Want To Master Life And Death”), we're treated to some black and white flashback footage from the first films ending as the opening credits play overtop of Rob's suicide.
The film then cuts to a woman, Monika, a female necrophile, digging up the protagonist from the first film to use as a sex object. Once this happens, we soon find out that Beatrice M. (again from the first film) has decided she'd like to reclaim her man, who she left for a corpse in Nekromantik, but alas, she has waited too long.
From here we witness Monika's journey into the depths of necrophilia and how it affects her attempt at a more conventional relationship, or more specifically, her inability to do so. Strange things start clueing in her 'real life' boyfriend that something might not be quite right. Little things, like her request that he not move at all during intercourse.
Once again, much like the first movie, we're treated to a shockingly good ending that is not for the faint of heart. I'd even go so far as to say that it outdoes the ending of the original film, and that's no small task.
More likely to appeal to the art-house horror crowd than those looking for a fast paced, brainless gore fest, Nekromantik 2 moves at a very slow and languid pace and is notably absent of very much dialogue, letting instead the camera and the soundtrack tell the story. The music and the cinematography work together exceptionally well, particularly during the movies climax, and in that respect, this movie is far superior to the first one.
While it's not a traditional gore film, thematically it's actually closer to a romance or a black comedy, there is a very extreme gross out factor that the film has working in it's favor (including a scene of animal violence that outdoes the rabbit scene from the film's predecessor - animal lovers, you are forewarned!). Buttgereit uses these scenes to pull you back in, to remind you that this is a very atypical relationship we're looking at here. It's also worth noting that the story is primarily told from Monika's point of view, as some of the devices used to further the narrative are quite interesting and certainly original.

While the pacing of the film isn't as quick and the black comedy isn't quite as thick, Nekromantik 2 is a worth follow up to the first film and it's interesting that, ironically, Rob ultimately does get the relationship he wanted so badly in the first film.

Video/Audio/Extras:

Nekromantik 2 is presented in it's original aspect ratio of 1.33.1 and was transferred from the original negative and given a brand new high definition transfer. Except for a few instances of grain here and there, Barrel has done a beautiful job. Colors are nice and crisp (except where they're supposed to be intentionally drab) and there are no edge enhancement issues or compression problems to report.

Viewers are given the option of watching the film in it's original German Mono soundtrack or in a more impressive newly re-mastered 2.0 German Stereo track. While both tracks are quite clean and easy to listen to, the 2.0 track adds a bit more depth, especially where the music is concerned. There are removable English subtitles present throughout the duration that are clear and easy to read.

Not only are the excellent soundtracks to Nekromantik 1 and 2 (with some bonus tracks thrown on as well) included on a second disc in the set, but there is a wealth of additional features included on the set as well. First up is a running commentary with Jí¶rg Buttgereit, co-author Franz Rodenkirchen, and actors Monika M. and Mark Reeder. It's spoken in English and although at times it is a slight bit tricky to make out what's being said because of the accents, for the most part it's quite easy to follow and there is a lot of great information divulged within.

Next up is a video for Rise Up by Die Krupps that was directed by Buttereit. It's a mix of live concert footage with some narrative shots inserted and runs for 4 minutes. For those unfamiliar with the band, they're an industrial outfit from Germany and Buttgereit's style actually complements their music quite nicely.

The still gallery on the disc is in slideshow format and runs 13:29 with over 100 images that were taken from the private collections of Buttgereit and Manfred Janinski. Most of these are behind the scenes shots but there are some nice promotional pieces in here as well including video release art and theatrical posters.

Continuing their trend of including some of Buttgereit's Super 8 shorts on their releases, here we're treated to Manne: The Movie, a strange bit about a man who runs into some difficulty at a soccer match. It runs 4:13 and looks about as good as you'd expect a Super 8 film from 1981 to look. It's grainy with some print damage, but easy enough to watch and it's always nice to see a director's early work included on their SE DVDs.

There is also an outtake reel that runs 11:03 without any sound behind it. It's mostly comprised of short, cutaway scenes but there are a few gory bits in here as well as a few other strange pieces that make it worth taking a look at.

I found the most interesting extra on the DVD to be the Making Of Nekromantik 2 that runs 26:36 and covers quite a bit of detail on how the film came to be. Viewers might want to check this one out twice, as interestingly enough, it has two very different audio tracks on it. The first is in English with Buttgereit and some cast members speaking over the video, and the second contains audio from some radio interviews that Buttgereit did back in Germany and luckily contains some nice, removable English subtitles. It's interesting to see the cast and crew being so candid behind the scenes, and serves as quite a contrast to the films subject matter. This is the same documentary that was included on the earlier Japanese DVD, but this time the German track has been subbed in English and it also includes the aforementioned new English audio track.

Rounding out the extra features are trailers for Nekromantik 2 and Buttgereit's other films: Nekromantik, Schramm, and Der Todesking, as well as a Buttgereit filmography and chapter selections. There are also some informative liners from Buttgereit and his biographer, David Kerekes.

The Final Word:

Barrel has once again done an outstanding job on presenting a difficult film. Even if the film isn't to everyone's tastes, the extras make it an exceptional release.