Who Am I – Netflix Review (4/5)

WHO AM I is a new thriller on Netflix by the creators of DARK. It’s a fast-paced story that has lots of twists and a big nod to Fight Club. However, don’t think you’ve got it all figured out until the very final scene. Read our full Who Am I movie review here and find it on Netflix now!

WHO AM I is a German thriller on Netflix by the DARK series creators. The original full title is “Who Am I – Kein System ist sicher” and the last part of the title is German for “No system is safe”. Obviously, this is a pretty big plot point in a movie about hackers.

The cast is full of familiar faces from Dark (of course), so if you’re a fan of that series, you’ll probably enjoy this. Also, the main protagonist is portrayed by Tom Schilling who also starred in Never Look Away (2018). A German movie that was nominated for two Academy Awards.

Continue reading our Who Am I movie review below. The movie is out on Netflix now.

A movie that draws on winning elements of other films

Who Am I reminded me of a (very!) updated version of the 1995 movie Hackers that starred Angelina Jolie and Jonny Lee Miller. Just like with that movie, the actual job of hacking is shown in a more creative way to help the viewer keep up. And also, to keep it interesting for the audience.

Even more so, however, I was reminded of the German movie Good Bye Lenin! (2003) starring Daniel Brühl of The Alienist series. Mostly, this latter movie is an obvious comparison in the narrative style since we have the main protagonist as a storyteller. 

Finally, there’s the very obvious Fight Club comparison which should be impossible to miss quite early on. However, this isn’t (really) a spoiler, so don’t think you’ve got it all figured out. You’ll see!

The ending of Who Am I on Netflix

This is not a “the Who Am I ending explained” piece, but rather a comment on the ending. Mostly, it’s a strong recommendation that you pay attention to this movie because it will keep you guessing.

Overall, the movie is quite fast-paced and features many elements that will make you think of Fight Club. However, rest assured that this is very intentional. If nothing else, the obvious Fight Club movie poster, shown on a wall at a critical point, should make this clear.

Also, don’t make the mistake of thinking you’ve got it all figured out until the very final scene. This is, after all, a movie by the same people that gave us the sci-fi mystery Netflix series Dark. In other words, yes, I did enjoy the ending of Who Am I. Also, I’ll gladly admit that when I thought I had first figured it out, I got annoyed that it wasn’t original. Ultimately, it was.

Watch Who Am I on Netflix now!

Baran bo Odar is the director of Who Am I as well as the co-writer of the screenplay alongside Jantje Friese. And yes, this is the actual duo that created the German Netflix series Dark. Baran bo Odar directed all 26 episodes (across three seasons) of the series and both are listed as “creators”.

In other words, this is unlike the new Netflix series Tribes of Europa which is promoted as being “by the Dark creators” but only has some producers in common.

Also, this is not a new movie but it is new to Netflix. The film first came out in 2014 but it has hardly aged, so that shouldn’t be an issue.

Also, it is obvious why a release on Netflix should happen now with the very active partnership with husband and wife duo, Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese. Especially since the duo is now working on their next Netflix series 1899 due out in 2022. In the meantime, have fun checking out this movie which was the first thing they wrote together.

Who Am I is out on Netflix in most countries from February 26, 2021.

Details

Director: Baran bo Odar
Writers: Jantje Friese, Baran bo Odar
Stars: Tom Schilling, Elyas M’Barek, Wotan Wilke Möhring, Antoine Monot Jr., Stephan Kampwirth, Leopold Hornung, Trine Dyrholm, Hannah Herzsprung, Leonard Carow