Mein Freund, der Mörder

Long-term portrait of the burglar and bank robber Bernhard Kimmel, who became known in the 1960s as "Al Capone of the Palatinate", cracking up to three safes in one night with his gang. Director Peter Fleischmann met Kimmel in 1970, when he had just completed his first, almost ten-year prison sentence. He interviewed him and became friends with him. Kimmel resumed his criminal career until 1982, when he shot a policeman after robbing a savings bank and injured another so badly that the latter was left paraplegic - a tough test for the friendship between the director and the robber turned murderer. Kimmel was sentenced to life imprisonment, but was released on parole after 22 years - and Fleischmann completed his portrait.

Directed by Peter Fleischmann, Mein Freund, der Mörder leans on a strong ensemble — Peter Fleischmann, Bernhard Kimmel — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about documentary titles of 2006.