{ "id": "epv9644kem", "slug": "mannersache", "title": "Männersache", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance", "label": "Comedy and romantic films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-2009-to-2010", "label": "Comedies of 2009 to 2010", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-2009-to-2010" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-2009-to-2010.yr-2009", "label": "Released in 2009", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-2009-to-2010.yr-2009" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance", "label": "Western Europe · 2001 to 2020: Comedy and romantic films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance", "path": [ { "id": "geo.weu", "label": "Western Europe", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001", "label": "Western Europe · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance", "label": "Comedy and romantic films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Männersache, also titled Man's Business, is a 2009 German comedy film, the first theatrical feature of comedian Mario Barth, released in German cinemas in March 2009.", "snippet": "Männersache, also titled Man's Business, is a 2009 German comedy film, the first theatrical feature of comedian Mario Barth, released in German cinemas in March 2009.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-2009-to-2010.yr-2009", "markdown": "# Männersache\n\n**Männersache** (German for \"Men's business\"; alternative English title *Man's Business*) is a 2009 German comedy film and the first theatrical feature of the comedian Mario Barth, who plays Paul, a Berlin pet-shop employee who becomes successful as a stand-up comedian only by telling jokes at the expense of his best friend and the friend's girlfriend[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) • [2](https://www.fernsehserien.de/filme/maennersache). It was produced by Oliver Berben for Constantin Film and released in German cinemas on 19 March 2009[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) • [3](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/).\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Original title | Männersache (DE); alternative title Man's Business[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) • [2](https://www.fernsehserien.de/filme/maennersache) |\n| Genre / country | Comedy, Germany, 2009[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) |\n| Direction | Gernot Roll; kino.de, FILMSTARTS and Deutschlandfunk Kultur also credit Mario Barth as co-director[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) • [4](https://www.kino.de/film/maennersache-2009/) |\n| Screenplay | Mario Barth and Dieter Tappert[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) |\n| Release | Premiere 15 March 2009 (Berlin); German theatrical release 19 March 2009[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) |\n| Admissions | 1,831,111 in Germany as of May 2009 (FFA figure)[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) |\n| Rating | FSK 12[3](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nPaul works by day in a Berlin pet shop and spends his evenings pursuing a career as a comedian, without success[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2). His fortunes change when he begins telling jokes about his best friend Hotte and Hotte's girlfriend Susi, drawing on the everyday absurdities of their relationship; the audiences react enthusiastically, while Hotte and Susi are furious once they learn how their private life is being used on stage[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2). Paul is left to choose between his friendship and his career[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2).\n\nIn the FILMSTARTS synopsis, Paul's breakthrough comes after the shady businessman Heinz König takes over as his manager, and the career stakes include a TV show called \"Germany on Stage\"[5](https://www.filmstarts.de/kritiken/141496.html). Paul and Hotte are childhood friends in this telling of the story[4](https://www.kino.de/film/maennersache-2009/).\n\n## Production\n\nThe screenplay was written by Mario Barth together with Dieter Tappert, a fellow Deutscher Comedy Prize winner who here appears as himself rather than in his stage persona Paul Panzer[3](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/). Oliver Berben produced the film for [Constantin Film](https://www.edgepedia.org/constantin-film); Martin Moszkowicz served as executive producer, and the production company was Moovie – the art of entertainment GmbH, Berlin[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2). Filming ran from 9 June to 11 August 2008 in Berlin and the surrounding area[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) • [3](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/). The film was shot on 35 mm in color with Dolby sound[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2).\n\nFunding came from the Deutscher Filmförderfonds (DFFF), Medienboard Berlin-[Brandenburg](https://www.edgepedia.org/brandenburg) (MBB), and FilmFernsehFonds Bayern (FFFB)[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2). Constantin Film's 2008 annual report describes the film as an in-house production by Oliver Berben, Barth's first theatrical film[6](https://www.highlight-communications.ch/view/data/3857/Gesch%C3%A4ftsberichte%20CF%20AG/CFAG_GB08_E.pdf).\n\n## Cast\n\n- Mario Barth as Paul[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2)\n- Dieter Tappert as Hotte[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2)\n- Anja Kling as Susi[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2)\n- Michael Gwisdek as Rudi[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2)\n- Michael Brandner as Heinz König[7](https://www.cinema.de/film/maennersache%2C3525483.html)\n- Thomas Thieme as Ingo Kloos, Florentine Lahme as Monique, Katrin Filzen as Steffi von Niggemeier, Michael Lott as Walter[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2)\n- Guest appearances include Jürgen Vogel, Leander Haußmann, and Sido[3](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/); Uwe Ochsenknecht plays Susi's father[8](https://tv.apple.com/de/movie/mannersache/umc.cmc.3h3ork081wgffdi7hp0d1bf8v)\n\n## Release and reception\n\nThe film premiered in Berlin on 15 March 2009 and opened in German cinemas on 19 March 2009[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2). It sold 1,831,111 tickets in Germany as of May 2009, according to the FFA figure recorded by filmportal.de[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2). Moviepilot reports that the film earned almost 13 million euros through DVD sales[9](https://www.moviepilot.de/movies/maennersache). The German television premiere followed on 26 September 2010 on [Sky Cinema](https://www.edgepedia.org/sky-cinema)[2](https://www.fernsehserien.de/filme/maennersache).\n\nCritical reception was poor. The FILMSTARTS editorial review rated the film 1.5 out of 10 (\"enttäuschend\", disappointing), with a user rating of 1.7 from 62 votes[5](https://www.filmstarts.de/kritiken/141496.html). On Videobuster, users gave it 2.6 of 5 stars across 582 ratings[10](https://www.videobuster.de/dvd-bluray-verleih/110452/maennersache), and Moviepilot users averaged 4.2 of 10[9](https://www.moviepilot.de/movies/maennersache). cinema.de noted that the film was not shown to the press in advance[7](https://www.cinema.de/film/maennersache%2C3525483.html). A Deutschlandfunk Kultur piece from 18 March 2009 described the film as the story of a male friendship put to a hard test, and reported Barth's insistence that it is a film for both sexes rather than one in which women come off badly[11](https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/maennersache-102.html).\n\n## Context in Mario Barth's career\n\nBarth came to the film as the most successful live comedian in Germany by his own publicity: his stage program *Männer sind primitiv, aber glücklich!* had drawn around 1.7 million visitors in Germany by the end of 2008, and on 12 July he performed before roughly 70,000 spectators at the Olympiastadion Berlin, which Constantin Film called a comedy world record[3](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/). Moviepilot likewise identifies him as the record holder for the stadium appearance[9](https://www.moviepilot.de/movies/maennersache). In the film, Sido appears in a guest role as a production manager in which he jokes about a rapper with a mask, effectively poking fun at himself[9](https://www.moviepilot.de/movies/maennersache).\n\n## Versions and runtime\n\nSources disagree on the running time: filmportal.de and cinema.de list 90 minutes[1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) • [7](https://www.cinema.de/film/maennersache%2C3525483.html), while fernsehserien.de, kino.de, and Cinestar list 95 minutes[2](https://www.fernsehserien.de/filme/maennersache) • [4](https://www.kino.de/film/maennersache-2009/) • [12](https://www.cinestar.de/film/maennersache). The DVD release runs about 92 minutes and the Blu-ray about 95 minutes, both issued on 24 September 2009[10](https://www.videobuster.de/dvd-bluray-verleih/110452/maennersache). kino.de lists the age rating as FSK 6[4](https://www.kino.de/film/maennersache-2009/), whereas Constantin Film, filmportal.de, and cinema.de give FSK 12[3](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/) • [1](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2) • [7](https://www.cinema.de/film/maennersache%2C3525483.html).\n\n## References\n\n1. [Männersache, filmportal.de](https://www.filmportal.de/film/maennersache_a2308270d39b4c779e161f9ac55beda2)\n2. [Männersache, fernsehserien.de](https://www.fernsehserien.de/filme/maennersache)\n3. [Männersache, Constantin Film](https://constantin.film/kino/maennersache/)\n4. [Männersache · Film 2009, kino.de](https://www.kino.de/film/maennersache-2009/)\n5. [Männersache – Film 2009, FILMSTARTS.de](https://www.filmstarts.de/kritiken/141496.html)\n6. [Constantin Film AG, Annual Report 2008, Highlight Communications](https://www.highlight-communications.ch/view/data/3857/Gesch%C3%A4ftsberichte%20CF%20AG/CFAG_GB08_E.pdf)\n7. [Männersache (2009), cinema.de](https://www.cinema.de/film/maennersache%2C3525483.html)\n8. [Männersache, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/de/movie/mannersache/umc.cmc.3h3ork081wgffdi7hp0d1bf8v)\n9. [Männersache | Film 2009, Moviepilot](https://www.moviepilot.de/movies/maennersache)\n10. [Männersache – DVD/Blu-ray, Videobuster](https://www.videobuster.de/dvd-bluray-verleih/110452/maennersache)\n11. [\"Männersache\", Deutschlandfunk Kultur, 18 March 2009](https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/maennersache-102.html)\n12. [Männersache, Cinestar](https://www.cinestar.de/film/maennersache)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of 2009 to 2010 › Released in 2009*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/mannersache", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/mannersache.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Männersache\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/mannersache. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Männersache](https://www.edgepedia.org/mannersache)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/mannersache](https://www.edgepedia.org/mannersache). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Männersache\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/mannersache. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Männersache, also titled Man's Business, is a 2009 German comedy film, the first theatrical feature of comedian Mario Barth, released in German cinemas in March 2009." }