This thread was originally about two different movies. I split
[REQ] Mein Freund Joe (1996) into its own thread.
Mein großer Freund (1998) Germany TV
aka Mein Freund Balou
aka My Great Friend
(not to be confused with Shane, Bigfoot, or Mighty Joe Young which is about all you'll see on Google

)
http://www.rarefilmfinder.com/showfilm.php?id=14379
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0184728/
IMDb wrote:Inside an ambulance, Gunter Lamprecht, twelve-year-old condemned person of prison for a stickup of bank. Suddenly, the man feigns a heart attack and takes advantage of the inattention of his guards to clear off. Then, he steals a car, without noticing that a passenger is there. Raphael Ghobadloo, nicknamed Balou by his friends, has just escaped from his grandmother. Everything separates these two beings, and nevertheless... A quite simple history, quite in sharpness and sensibility.
Anyone know anything about this film? Rich's link appears dead.