Der Panther

Johnny calls himself "the panther". He is a trickster and a fraudster, a totally nice guy and a ruthless criminal, a human catastrophe and a loving father; but above all, he is a gambler. As a confidential informant, he provides the police with tip-offs about criminal gangs and makes big money by playing both sides – because he wants to get out of debt, because he promised his drug-addicted daughter a new life, because he keeps saying that he will soon be running away to Vietnam. No matter what the story is, Johnny needs cash. In order to rise up through the ranks, he carries out brutal acts of violence sanctioned by the police. When Johnny meets the gang leader Porno, he sees his chance to hit the jackpot: he will outsmart them all, cops and gangsters, and then finally go on the run, taking nothing and no one with him except the thousands in his pocket. Because a panther thinks only about itself; it has to be free and has to go it alone, right Johnny? Alone until death.

Source: 74. Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (Catalogue)