Dark and extremely atmospheric, Tattoo is a stylish German thriller, which has won favourable comparisons to the likes of Se7en, 8MM and The Silence of the Lambs. They're certainly not without foundation as the grisly imagination of writer and director, Robert Schwentke, is an unnerving place, as he neatly turns some of the staples of the serial killer flick on its head.
At first the story seems to be a predictable one - an older experienced cop, Minks (Redl) is paired with impetuous rookie Marc Schrader (Diehl) in an effort to track down a particularly nasty serial killer. Flaying the bodies of his victims, the killer, as the title indicates, seems to have a thing for unusual tattoos, especially those by a Japanese artist whose work is considered extremely valuable. As the pair of mismatched cops get deeper into their investigation (and Minks' personal life gets out of control), they immerse themselves in a bizarre subculture which has a disturbing morality all of its own.
A zippy procedural thriller marshalled by a director with an extremely strong visual dynamic, Tattoo moves with purpose and vigour. Schwentke riffs off the most obvious genre mainstays, but does so with so much energy and verve that it's easier to accept the odd hole in the narrative. Thanks in part to the bleached out stock used by the director; Tattoo has an ungodly air, something which is complimented by the relentless intensity of the premise, which the talented Schwentke expertly maintains throughout.
