Despite his bizarre literary output Franz Kafka lived a fairly mundane and normal life. "Kafka" is not a biography but a psychological thriller that puts Kafka in a real nightmare not unlike something he might have concocted. In brief people, miners from a particular town, are dying and their families paid insurance money. But have they died? If not what happened to them? This is the central mystery around which circulate anarchists, a sinister police inspector (brilliantly portrayed by Mueller Stahl), lost loves, totally different identical twins and a philosopher grave digger who knows more about less than anyone else. Snippets of situations from Kafka's novels are also ingeniously used in places. For reasons that will become apparent the film is in black and white and for a brief period in color. While it is a drama the tongue is delightfully in cheek for most of the film. Even if you do not know Kafka's writings you can enjoy the film on its own as a thriller. One of the more ingenious films of recent years that not only makes you think but provides a good time along the way.
