Line #76 Film/DerWixxer


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/2835f66b539792c1c592a36e3beb1636.jpg]]
2
3	-> ''"Hello, this is Edgar Wallace his neighbor!"''
4
5	In UsefulNotes/WestGermany of the 1950s and 1960s, a popular movie series based upon the crime stories of British author Edgar Wallace, known as the Film/EdgarWallaceFilms, was produced, and it still has a cult following. Catering to this cult following (while still remaining funny for people not knowing these movies) the [[GermanHumour German comedians]] Oliver Kalkofe, Oliver Welke and Bastian Pastewka produced the AffectionateParody ''Der Wixxer'' in 2004 and its sequel, ''Neues vom Wixxer'', in 2007.
6
7	The dualogy deals with the UsefulNotes/ScotlandYard inspectors Very Long (Pastewka) and Even Longer (Kalkofe), who are trying to arrest a masked super-criminal known as the Wixxer.
8
9	----
10	!! These films provide examples of:
11
12	* AdolfHitlarious: The whole joke around Alfons Hatler is of course that he is [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed suspiciously similar to a certain mid-20th century dictator]].
13	* AffectionateParody
14	* AFoggyDayInLondonTown: So foggy, it's inside the morgue it seems.
15	* AmbiguouslyGay: Sir John. While he does show interest in prostitutes, he also sculpts phalli in his spare time and seems to have gay friends.
16	* AntagonistTitle: Ditto.
17	* ArcWords: ''"Rather Short is dead!"''
18	* AristocratsAreEvil: The Earl of Cockwood, although he only got the title by marriage. [[spoiler: Also Victoria Dickham in the second movie.]]
19	* ArtShift: Everything is black and white in [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Blackwhite Castle]] and St. Vokuhila.
20	* AutopsySnackTime: The coroner Dr. Brinkman lets his little son (plus a bunch of other kids) have a ''birthday party'' in the morgue.
21	* BedlamHouse: The Bates Hospital
22	* BiggerOnTheInside: In the first movie, a tiny shack in the middle of a concrete field holds the enormous conference hall owned by the National Syndicate of Notorious Criminals.
23	* BreakingTheFourthWall: Occasionally. For example, when Ms Drycunt says to the detectives, "ItsALongStory", Very Long points out that the viewers don't have that much time.
24	* BritainIsOnlyLondon: Averted: Although many scenes take place in UsefulNotes/{{London}} (UsefulNotes/ScotlandYard being there and all), Blackwhite Castle and St. Vokuhila are clearly not in the inner city. This is lampshaded when Blackwhite Castle is described as "Not in London, but in England."
25	* BuddyCopShow: With Even Longer as the StraightMan and Very Long as the PluckyComicRelief.
26	* TheButlerDidIt: [[spoiler: No, even though he looks like Hitler.]]
27	* CastingGag: Joachim Fuchsberger, who played the inspector in several of the old Edgar Wallace movies, is the retired policeman Lord Dickham in the second Wixxer-movie.
28	* ChekhovsGun: In the first movie, Very Long's [[spoiler: yo-yo skills.]] In the second, [[spoiler: the color switch in St. Vokuhila]] and [[spoiler: the can of tomato soup worn by Scotland Yard policemen.]]
29	* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Particularly Very Long and Sir John are prone to that.
30	--> '''Sir John:''' ''[looking at a pinboard with profile pictures, three of whom are grey placeholder silhouettes]'' And who are those three [[NobleBigotWithABadge niggers]]? They all look the same...
31	** And:
32	--->'''Even Longer''': Did you check the license plate?\
33	'''Doctor Brinkman''': Yeah, sure, but... it's just painted metal, these are abundant. Almost every car has one of those.
34	* CreatorCameo: In the sequel both directors appear as paramedics called to the Abbey.
35	* CreatorProvincialism: Although the story takes place in England, some jokes, most likely due to [[RuleOfFunny Reasons Of Funny]], are quite German-specific. (Even Longer attended the Bundesjugendspiele??)
36	* DaChief: Sir John is a [[TheDitz rather ditzy]] version of this.
37	* DeadpanSnarker: Even Longer reigns surpreme.
38	* DefrostingIceQueen: Chief Inspector Even Longer. Still lukewarm at the end, but an improvement.
39	-->'''Very Long:''' Don't you realize [[{{Metaphorgotten}} you stuck your heart into a fridge of your own feelings]]?!
40	* DecapitationStrike: It turns out it was Victoria Dickham's plan all along to blow up the entire British royal family during a wedding to catapult herself onto the throne. It is foiled by the protagonists via WireDilemma.
41	* DeliberatelyMonochrome: [[ExactlyWhatItsaysOnTheTin Blackwhite]] Castle and St. Vokuhila. The latter is even a literal example ''within the story'': The nuns living there don't like colours, therefore they have a switch for turning the colours on and off!
42	* DrivingADesk: Combined with StylisticSuck.
43	* EveryCarIsAPinto: Bicycles and ''stair lifts'' can also be Pintos!
44	* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler: After killing the original Wixxer, Longer's old partner Rather Short decides to abandon his dull life as policeman in order to become the new Wixxer.]]
45	* FakeKillScare: [[spoiler: Rather Short fakes himself]] ''[[spoiler: being blown up!]]''
46	* FunWithAcronyms: The villainous organisation from the first movie known as the '''N'''ational '''SY'''ndicate of '''N'''otorious '''C'''riminals.
47	* GoodTimesMontage: Parodied in the first movie when Even Longer remembers his time with Rather Short.
48	* GroinAttack: Via floor board.
49	* GunTwirling: Parodied - whenever someone tries it, they end up dropping their weapon.
50	* HerrDoktor: By the time of the second movie, Hatler got a medical degree and now runs an [[BedlamHouse insane asylum]] in Britain.
51	* HisNameIs: PlayedForLaughs with the Earl of Cockwood offering to reveal the Wixxer's identity, only to proclaim with his last breath that he hasn't time for that anymore. In the sequel, Eddie the Informant is killed short of revealing Wixxer's whereabouts and Chucky Norris is accidentally hit on the head and drowns before revealing Wixxer's identity.
52	* HurricaneOfPuns: ANY name of any person or location. Aside of sexual allusions they also play with a German grocery store chain, hairstyles and whatnotever.
53	* IHaveManyNames: Harry Smearlap, otherwise known as Laus Linski (an allusion to Creator/KlausKinski), Fritz Carraldo or Horst Feratu (an allusion to {{Film/Nosferatu}}).
54	* ImprobableWeaponUser: Inspector Very Long uses [[spoiler: a yoyo]] to attack the Wixxer at the end of the first movie [[spoiler:(Well, he ''is'' the champion of a yoyo-derby!)]], and turns a blackboard-sized ruler and set square into a makeshift set of sword and shield, in the second movie... [[spoiler: and even manages to break his opponent's sword with said ruler.]]
55	* IncrediblyLamePun: So bad, it's funny. In "Neues vom Wixxer" Even Longer chases Chucky Norris and comes to signpost that points in two directions. They read "Moor" and "More Moor".
56	* InnocentInnuendo:
57	** When Mrs. Pennymarket tells Chief Inspector Longer about how pugs ("Möpse") are bred at Blackwhite Castle ("Möpse" is also slang for "boobs".)
58	** And in another scene, Longer exclaims that he has a gigantic thing in his trousers! He means [[spoiler:the poisonous snake someone has smuggled into his clothes.]]
59	* LampshadeHanging
60	-->'''Very Long:''' Why ''did'' you run in slow motion, Sir?
61	* LatexPerfection: Spoofed several times. In the first movie, the Wixxer wears the face of a [[TheCameo well-known talk- and quiz-show host]] over his bulky expressionless skull mask. In the second movie, Even's brother Much Longer wears a mask that looks exactly like his own face, just with a moustache.
62	* LawyerFriendlyCameo: Although being a human in a costume instead of a puppet (just like the homonymous Edgar Wallace character he is a parody of), the Frog with the Mask looks like [[Franchise/TheMuppets Kermit]], has ''the same voice actor'' as Kermit, and at one point even says: [[CatchPhrase "Applause!"]]
63	* LeftTheBackgroundMusicOn: The ScareChord when they find the Wixxer's logo on the truck was just the police's marching band that was on the scene.
64	* LegacyCharacter:[[spoiler: You could consider the Wixxer to be one: Within two movies, 4 different people have been under this mask.]]
65	* LowSpeedChase: The stair lift chase in ''Neues vom Wixxer''.
66	* ManChild: Very Long. That Pinocchio ice cream really is only [[IncrediblyLamePun the tip of the ice berg]]. [[note]]Because [[DontExplainTheJoke they ate at the Titanic Tearoom]].[[/note]]
67	* MeaningfulName[=/=]StealthPun: Ubiquitous. All the names: Very Long, Even Longer, Much Longer, Rather Short, Miss [[Film/JamesBond Minipony]], Earl of Cockwood, Freddie Fartface, Cookie Dent (referring German dental maintenance brand ''Kukident''), Harry Smearlap (pun on the German word ''Schmierlappen'', meaning ''Greasy Slimeball''), ''Der Wixxer'' (a pun on the German word ''"The Wanker"''), Miss Drycunt, Pomeroy (Pommi) and Fitzgerald (Fritti) (a pun to ''Pommes Frites''), [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Alfons Hatler]], Miss Pennymarket (a pun on the discounter "''Penny''"; ironically, she was adopted by an owner of a corner shop), Lord Dickham, RIP (Rest In Pieces), [[Film/{{Psycho}} Bates]] Hospital, and finally Vokuhila Monastery (pun on the abbrev. Vo.Ku.Hi.La.; the German slang term for mullet).
68	* MediumAwareness: Some places are almost only shown in black & white. The characters are aware of this, and seem to regard this as a sign of the edifices being of old age and/or of the inhabitants being old-fashioned.
69	* MinionWithAnFInEvil: The Monk With The Whip, The Fat Shark, The Frog With The Mask amongst others.
70	* MotiveRant: After the Wixxer is finally unmasked in the first movie. [[spoiler: Poor Even Longer...]]
71	* MomentKiller: Very Long just doesn't know when to shut up.
72	* MundaneMadeAwesome: A chase scene with bicycles? Or ''stair lifts''??
73	* NewscasterCameo: The Frog With The Mask in a tell-all interview with [[Series/WhoWantsToBeAMillionaire Günther Jauch]].
74	* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Very odd example: [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Alfons Hatler]].
75	--> ''[Upon meeting Lord Dickham (played by Joachim Fuchsberger, who also starred in many crime movies, including 'Der Hexer')]'':\
76	'''Even Longer:''' It is an honour to meet a man who personally caught The Squeaker.\
77	'''Very Long:''' It was Heinz Drache. ''(another German actor, who played the inspector in 'Der Zinker'/'The Squeaker')''.
78	* NoodleIncident: Even Longer is wearing an artificial leg due to an ''escalator accident at Harrods''.
79	** And a steel plate in the head from the Bundesjugendspiele.
80	* NoOSHACompliance: Having his kids over in the morgue for a birthday party wasn't Doctor Brinkmans brightest moment.
81	* ParallelPornTitles: The title alludes to the Edgar Wallace movie ''Der Hexer'' (''The Warlock''). See XtremeKoolLetterz to learn more.
82	* ParodyCommercial: For annoying gag ring tones, useless SMS dating services and overprized mail-order CD collections.
83	* PocketProtector: Very Long, Lord Dickham, and presumably other Scotland Yard employees wear a can of tomato soup in their breast pockets, just for that purpose.
84	* PunnyName: Almost everyone. A special mention goes to Harry Smearlap in the first movie. The character is a ShoutOut to Creator/KlausKinski's parts in the original Wallace movies. His aliases, as mentioned by Even Longer: [[Creator/KlausKinski Laus Linski]], [[Film/{{Fitzcarraldo}} Fritz Carraldo]] and [[Film/{{Nosferatu}} Horst Ferratu]].
85	* {{Retraux}}: Basically the reason why Blackwhite Castle and St. Vokuhila are in this movies (most scenes there are in black & white, like the early Edgar Wallace movies).
86	* RetroUniverse: Also when in colour, the movies try to aesthetically come close to the Wallace films of TheSixties they are spoofing, via the costumes, cars, ect. Except when the RuleOfFunny comes into play. Just one example: Dieter Dubinsky's allusions to the [[UsefulNotes/EastGermany GDR]] in past tense would suggest the story being set at a time after 1989.
87	* RubeGoldbergHatesYourGuts: Very Long and Dieter Dubinsky barely escape a DeathTrap invoking this category.
88	* RunningGag: ''"Wanna buy some roses? [[DullSurprise Hahaha.]]"''
89	* UsefulNotes/ScotlandYard
90	* SeriousBusiness: How TabletopGame/{{Monopoly}} is treated at the "Fishy Fingers".
91	* ServileSnarker: Hatler's always in polite mode, and is also quite fond of calling people "Arschloch" (Asshole) the minute they turn their backs.
92	* ShoutOut: Besides the old Edgar Wallace movies, allusions to many other films abound:
93	** When [[spoiler: Very Long is shot]] and Even Longer remembers how close they were together, all scenes with Indians are exact copies of corresponding scenes from the German adaptation of ''Literature/{{Winnetou}}'', a cult movie series in Germany. Doubles with FridgeBrilliance, as these movies were also released in the 60s.
94	** Hard to spot, but just listen to the [[Film/DasBoot few tacts of music]] that plays when special agent Inge Lenzen gets out of the miniature submarine.
95	** When Longer confronts Harry Smearlap, the latter says he'd have prepared a cake if he knew Longer would be visiting that day, a reference to a popular song from the german version of Series/SesameStreet, sung by Ernie to Cookie Monster.
96	** Members of the National Syndicate of Notorious Criminals:
97	*** [[Series/TheMuppetShow The Frog With The Mask]]
98	*** [[Film/DrNo Doctor No]] and Doctor Yes
99	*** [[Series/HausmeisterKrause The Groundskeeper With The Cord Hat]]
100	*** Literature/TheRobberHotzenplotz
101	* SmugSnake: Harry Smearlap. At one point he even strokes a real snake to emphasize that.
102	* SoundtrackDissonance: Adolf Hitler's doppelgänger singing "My Way" by Paul Anka. Compounds with LyricalDissonance.
103	* SpaghettiKiss: Almost happens in a flashback, between Even Longer... [[HoYay and Rather Short]].
104	* StatingTheSimpleSolution: Very Long absent-mindedly asks why the villains don't just shoot ''him'' while being chained to an elaborate DeathTrap.
105	--> '''Twins:''' But...we've set everything up now.
106	* TheSyndicate: Parodied with the National Syndicate of Notorious Criminals, the members of which are either [[ShoutOut parodies of characters from Edgar Wallace films]] (The Frog in the Mask, The Terrible Band, The Stupid Archer, The Colorful Black Abbot) or just plain nonsensical (the unnamed mime, The Arse with the Ears).
107	* TakingTheBullet: Very Long sees the bullet shot at Even Longer, runs alongside the bullet, ''overtakes it'', throws himself into the bullet's path, lands back onto the ground [[PainfullySlowProjectile before the bullet even touches him]], ''jumps again'', and is finally hit by the projectile. All this of course in [[BulletTime slow motion]].
108	* UnconventionalVehicleChase: The first film features a multi-party chase with old, creaky bicycles. The sequel has a stairlift chase.
109	* WireDilemma: Solved by [[spoiler: switching to black & white, so that all the wires look the same]].
110	* WretchedHive: The "Fishy Fingers" apparently. Both Sir John and Doctor Brinkman can be found there quite frequently.
111	* XtremeKoolLetterz: The title is a parody on ''Der Hexer'' (one x), one of the classic Edgar Wallace movies. ''Wixxer'' is a idiosyncratic spelling of ''Wichser'' (wanker).
112	* [[BulletTime Yo-Yo Time]]: Very Long's yo-yo attacks get this treatment, both for [[PlayedForLaughs laughs]] and [[MundaneMadeAwesome coolness]].

Context Film / DerWixxer