Festival of German Films 2010 - 2

It's been a Fatih Akin blitz this week, having watched his new comedy and two older films - a music documentary and his dramatic feature debut. I've also revisited The White Ribbon, the must-see film of the festival (though it has a cinematic release just after). All up, there's six films reviewed.

• Soul Kitchen (Fatih Akin, Germany, 2009)
• Das Weiße Band - Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte (The White Ribbon, Michael Haneke, Austria, 2009)
• Aimée & Jaguar (Max Färberböck, Germany, 1999)
• Crossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul (Fatih Akin, Germany/Turkey, 2005)
  
• Kurz und schmerzlos (Short Sharp Shock, Fatih Akin, Germany, 1998)
• Die Päpstin (Pope Joan, Sönke Wortmann, Germany/UK/Italy/Spain, 2009)
  

Soul Kitchen
While Fatih Akin's latest film, a comedy called Soul Kitchen, is being described as very different to his earlier works, it has much in common with his first film, Short Sharp Shock in terms of place, characters and themes. In both films we see signs for Altona, a suburb of Hamburg that appears to crime-ridden and rundown. The restaurant in Soul Kitchen's title looks much like wharf warehouses we see in the earlier film. Adam Bousdoukos plays a petty crim in the earlier film, and the lead in Soul Kitchen, while Moritz Bleibtreu takes on a role similar to Bousdoukos' in the earlier film. And crime and trying to get ahead (honestly for some, by any means for others) are themes in common to both.

Bousdoukos' role in Short Sharp Shock provided welcome comic relief to a fairly dark story - in this film the comedy takes front row and he play a fairly boofhead sort of role that, despite the somewhat slapstick element, works quite well because of the authenticity of both his role and that of Bleibtreu, who plays his brother recently released from prison on day-release. Bleibtreu's performance is particularly effective, given that he has no Greek background yet channels the characteristics perfectly. I was a bit surprised at how well he resembled both in appearance and behaviour some of my in-laws.

Birol Ünel played an acclaimed role in Akin's Head On (which I have yet to see). In Soul Kitchen, he plays my favourite character - a chef, somewhat like the soup Nazi in Seinfeld - and we don't see enough of him. I like that despite making a light comedy, Akin uses heavy-weight actors like Ünel and Bleibtreu who play it largely straight, while the comedy is in how the story is constructed.

There's actually a lot going on in the story, which I won't detail here. It becomes quite convoluted and one doesn't have to be too astute to see some of the set-ups with the array of characters. The mood of the film is instantly upbeat from the start and never really lets up for its duration. Akin obviously has a fascination with music (his 2005 music documentary Crossing the Bridge is also screening at the festival) and I was impressed with how well a very diverse range of music styles is incorporated into the film.

As someone keen to see more of Akin's films (there's three at the festival and I've now seen them all), the film is definitely worth seeing. However, it's more of a curiosity and I much prefer his more dramatic work. I think the biggest mistake in the film is an overt sex scene which pretty much rules this film out as suitable for children - it's actually a little gratuitous and quite unnecessary. Otherwise, the comedic elements would have made it good for children. This film should appeal to a more mainstream arthouse audience (ie, Palace, etc), and it opens in cinemas on 6 May.

The White Ribbon
As I wrote in my FoGF preview, this was my favourite film at MIFF last year and, outside of the pressure cooker environment of MIFF, it was a joy to revisit it. This time I made more of an effort to follow which children belong to which families, to try to get a better handle on the intrigue. Haneke films frequently raise more questions than they answer, and he provides all the keys to unlock the mysteries he creates, but it's never simple at first glance.

While the film is relatively long (144 minutes) and even though there are long Haneke-signature static takes, it is always compelling. The camera's dwelling on a door while we hear what's on the other side of it is just a beautiful thing to behold. I noticed on this viewing how well constructed and edited the film is. Haneke quite cleverly and seamlessly blends one scene with children into another. It actually taxes the audience and one is forced to take mental count. I love a film that involves the audience, that doesn't hand things on a silver platter and make one work for it.

The film's elderly narrator in the present (one of the young characters in the story) makes a lovely comment at the start - what we are seeing cannot be entirely trusted because the truth is obscured over time. It adds uncertainty to a story which - even based on what we see - is already uncertain. At one stage, we see this character questioning another as to why he is engaged in risky behaviour. The answer to this question might offer insight into some of the mysteries that unfold, but the other's silence frustrates his pursuit of the truth. The whole film is like a 'whodunnit' where we try to solve these mysteries. And yet, that's not really what the film is about - it's really a parable about the nature of people, the causes of evil culminating in two world wars, and ultimately an examination of current world events - all without a mention of war. This is my kind of film - one of the three best to be released in theatres for the year so far (the others being A Prophet and Animal Kingdom, opening in June). The White Ribbon opens in cinemas on 6 May.

Aimée & Jaguar
This moving 1999 film is part of the festival's 'Berlin Based' stream and was followed by a Q&A with the author of the non-fiction book (Erica Fischer) that the film is based on. It's about a woman whose soldier husband is absent and who takes a lover that is not only a woman but a Jew. The story is so fantastic that, were it not true (and reportedly accurate), one might have trouble swallowing it.

I don't recall seeing any Holocaust depictions in Germany during the war. There have been many films from many countries depicting the subject and I always assumed that Jews were pretty much eliminated from Germany - or the cities at least - by the time the early stages of World War II had commenced. Certainly there was a nasty round-up of Jews well before that time in Germany. So it came as a surprise to me to see that Jews were still very much a part of a clandestine life in Berlin so late during the war (late 1944).

The cinematography is excellent, giving a strong feel for the period and the performances are mostly good. The story seems just a little melodramatic at times.

The author of the book, Erica Fischer, fielded questions after the screening. She mentioned that there were some elements of the story she wasn't entirely happy with but accepted the director's discretion in changing some details to make the story more cinematic. She said that the dialogue is very true to the book. She made up some of the dialogue in the book, but it's all based on interviews she did with the real-life Lilly Wust (d. 2006) and research she did on historical documents. The film is mostly concerned with the relationship between Wust and Felice Schragenheim, but the book contains much historic material such as photographs and documents.

Crossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul
I really enjoyed this Fatih Akin music documentary. Perhaps in tracing his own ethnic roots, Akin is exploring the soul of the city of Istanbul. Music is clearly important to him, and he treats the subject with much respect in this film. Many artists of various styles - traditional, modern and in-between - are depicted and interviewed. There is much crossover or fusion between styles and it's quite moving to see rap artists talk with respect about pop artists. Or the meaning and significance of their work. Rap in Turkey, for example, eschews the gansta elements of American rap and is more interested in contemporary social and political issues. The film is not particularly coherent in telling a story, but works as a sort of map of the different styles and influences in Istanbul.

Short Sharp Shock
This is Fatih Akin's feature debut and has a lot in common with the Australian film, Cedar Boys. Gabriel (of Turkish background) has just got out of prison and hooks up with his petty thieving mates Costa (Greek) and Bobby (Serbian). Bobby wants to go big-time and work for the Albanian mafia while Gabriel wants to go straight and maybe return to his homeland.

As mentioned above, Costa provides some light relief to what is fairly dark material - not surprising given it's a film by Fatih Akin, and this early piece shows all the hallmarks that he has mastered in his more recent films. Akin also has a cameo role as a drug dealer (that's him on the right in the photo), also as a bit of light relief.

Akin's films always seem to be on the go, with a lot of energy and music to match. This is quite an ambitious debut, grabbing quite a lot of dramatic elements - there are various dynamics with sisters and girlfriends complicating matters, parents and religion, and of course multiple ethnicities. The various ethnicities of the three mates were almost irrelevant in the sense that these guys bonded regardless, and is very reminiscent of major Australian cities (certainly mine, Melbourne).

Having seen Akin's more recent work first, I come to this film from a different perspective than someone who saw this one first. I still think that I would have liked it for its themes and it definitely signposted the talent that has further developed. It's a very worthwhile film.

Pope Joan
The audience seemed to be enjoying this film, laughing in all the right places, etc. It looks very nice as a period film (9th Century Europe) and has an impressive international cast (including David Wenham in a significant role). But it did nothing for me and I could tell pretty much from the start that I wasn't going to like it (but I tried, I swear!).

The biggest problems for me were a lack of subtlety, over-theatrics and plausibility. The story is about a woman who pretends to be a man and becomes the Pope. The director, who answered questions afterwards, said he believed the story may be based on truth, but now doubts it. I think it's highly implausible, and the way much of the story panned out required a pretty big stretch in suspending disbelief.

I really didn't like the way characters were almost caricatures. It betrays a distrust in an audience's ability to perceive the obvious, that everything has to be spelt out in huge letters, so to speak. A father isn't just unreasonable, he's not just brutal, but he's massively brutal. Bad guys looked like bad guys, really bad guys. And so it continued throughout the film, and it all felt so theatrical - actors performing on a stage. But that's me, and a mainstream audience will lap it up.

Looking at both this film and Visions, and seeing what a black history the Church has, one has to question why any sane person would want to be part of such an organisation. So much of its history has been founded on violence and treachery.

Cross-posted on Club Troppo

Festival of German Films - Festival Guests

As an addendum to my FoGF 2010 Preview, I thought I'd cut and paste a media release regarding the festival's guests:

Famed Director SÖNKE WORTMANN & Acclaimed Feminist Writer ERICA FISCHER in Oz for AUDI FESTIVAL OF GERMAN FILMS 2010

Now celebrating its 9th year, the AUDI FESTIVAL OF GERMAN FILMS returns in late April with its most dynamic line-up to date. Boasting more than 30 new movies – most of which have never before been screened in Australia, the Festival will commence in Sydney on April 21 and tour Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth until May 9 Our 2010 guests include renowned German Director Sönke Wortmann (THE MIRACLE OF BERN, MAYBE, MAYBE NOT, ALONE AMONG WOMEN) and noted feminist author, Erica Fischer, who both speak excellent English.

Wortmann will introduce screenings of his latest film, POPE JOAN, starring Johanna Wokalek (THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX), David Wenham and John Goodman, whilst Fischer will present special screenings of the classic 1999 feature AIMÉE & JAGUAR, based on her best-selling 1994 novel, Aimée & Jaguar: A Love Story.

SÖNKE WORTMANN (In Melbourne Tuesday 27 April & Sydney on Thursday 29 April)
Sönke Wortmann is one of Germany’s most successful directors and producers, who has shaped German cinema since the 1990s. Wortmann has received numerous awards, including the Bambi for MAYBE, MAYBE NOT (Der bewegte Mann), the Bayerischer Filmpreis for THE MIRACLE OF BERN (Das Wunder von Bern) as well as the Bambi and the Adolf-Grimme-Preis for his documentary of the FIFA World Cup 2006: DEUTSCHLAND. EIN SOMMERMÄRCHEN. His second big passion is: Soccer – a topic he has very successfully brought to the big screen. His international blockbuster POPE JOAN (Die Päpstin), was a major box-office success in Germany in 2009 and will have its Australian premiere during the Festival.

ERICA FISCHER (Available now in Sydney and in Melbourne on Friday 23 April) Erica Fischer was born in England, where her Jewish- Austrian parents found exile during WW2. She was a founding member of the New Women’s Movement in Vienna, participating as activist, theorist and speaker in various events and demonstrations and co-founded the feminist magazine AUF – Eine Frauenzeitschrift (A Woman’s Magazine) as well as the women’s bookstore Frauenzimmer. Fischer is the author of more than 12 books, among them Aimée & Jaguar - a real-life love story of two women in war-troubled Germany. Published in 1994, it was a major success and has since been translated into 20 languages and in 1998 was made into a major film, which screens in the Festival. Erica Fischer presently lives in Berlin and works as a freelance author, interpreter and journalist.

Festival of German Films 2010 - Preview

The Festival of German Films 2010 opens with Fatih Akin's new comedy Soul Kitchen at the Como cinema on Thursday 22 April. The FoGF has gradually increased on popularity, and more by serious programming rather than populist. In fact, I suspect this has had an influence on the French Film Festival, which has until recently had too much of a focus (in my opinion) on popular mainstream cinema. Don't get me wrong, the FoGF is showcasing films that audiences will find appealing; it's just that the festival doesn't shy away from edgier themes.

I spoke briefly to festival director, Klaus Krischok from the Goethe Institute, about his criteria for selecting films for the festival. This year for the first time, there are different streams. He acknowledged my suggestion that the Culinary Comedies was chosen largely because of Akin's new film. (Akin is, of course, well-known for his sublime serious dramatic films like The Edge of Heaven and Head On.) Not only have other comedies been selected with a culinary theme, but film-goers will have a rare opportunity to see earlier films by Akin: Crossing the Bridge - The Sound of Istanbul, a documentary from 2005, and Short Sharp Shock, an inter-cultural drama from 1998 (These are both top of my list of films I want to see at the festival).

Another stream is 'Berlin Based', films focusing on Berlin. I've seen the first episode of The Wolves of Berlin, reviewed below, and hope to see the remaining two episodes during the festival. In answer to my question about his criteria for the 'German Currents' films, Klaus said that history and politics are strong themes that he feels that make German cinema distinctive. His three top recommendations for the festival are: When We Leave, Soul Kitchen and My Words, My Lies - My Love.

Of the following films that I've previewed, my pick are The White Ribbon as 'must-see', and Whisky with Vodka, Vision, Storm and The Wolves of Berlin as 'worth-seeing'.

In addition to screenings of 33 films, there will be panel discussions for Storm and The White Ribbon, and Sönke Wortmann, who has three films screening at the festival, and feminist author Erica Fischer, author of Aimée & Jaguar, will also be in attendance.

• Die Tür (The Door, Anno Saul, Germany, 2009)
• Die Standesbeamtin (Will You Marry Us?, Micha Lewinsky, Switzerland, 2009)
• John Rabe (Florian Gallenberger, France/China/Germany, 2009)
• Schwerkraft (Gravity, Maximilian Erlenwein, Germany, 2009)
• Whisky mit Wodka (Whisky with Vodka, Andreas Dresen, Germany, 2009)
• Die Wölfe: Nichts kann uns trennen (The Wolves of Berlin: Part One - Nothing Can Part Us, Friedemann Fromm, Germany, 2009)
• Sturm (Storm, Hans-Christian Schmid, Germany/Denmark/Netherlands, 2009)
• Vision - Aus dem Leben der Hildegard von Bingen (Vision, Margarethe von Trotta, Germany/France, 2009)
• Das Weiße Band (The White Ribbon, Michael Haneke, Austria, 2009)

The Door
An artist loses his young daughter and gets another chance at making things right when he finds a doorway that takes him to another place. I suppose this paranormal thriller has parallels with films like The Terminator or Donnie Darko (without the sci-fi or special effects), with ideas that could have been used more effectively than they are here. On a micro-level, the acting is generally proficient, and the film looks nice enough. The problem is in the difficulty that a discerning audience will have in suspending disbelief at certain key moments, and it's the writing that is the weak point. Ultimately, the film should be entertaining for a mainstream audience but disappointing for cinephiles.

Will You Marry Us?
A civil celebrant is having marital problems and is asked by an old love interest to perform his marriage ceremony. This Swiss film is more romantic than comedy, though the film's premise and English title certainly suggests romantic comedy. The nature of markets, I suppose, means that distributors or film programming requires that genre labels be applied. All the contrived devices and predictable trajectory of the rom-com are employed. Yet the film remains a touch above the Hollywood standard by slightly understating the narrative and keeping the humour to a minimum. The visuals are lovely and there's a deliberate production theme using yellow primarily and the occasional use of the other primary colours. Anyone who enjoys romantic comedies shouldn't be disappointed with this.

John Rabe
This is a big studio film, a kind of cross between two Steven Spielberg films - Empire of the Sun and Schindler's List. It certainly looks good, depicting John Rabe, a German industrialist living in Nangking when it was invaded by the Japanese in 1937. He is credited with the saving of some 200,000 Chinese lives through his part in creating a safe zone. The 'Rape of Nangking' is a contentious issue between China and Japan. Japan has yet to fully acknowledge the extent of its wartime atrocities which include pillage, rape and mass murder - some 300,000 are estimated to have been killed in 6 weeks.

The film certainly works well cinematically if you're looking for a Spielberg-like war film. The more brutal aspects are largely sanitised for the big screen, though we do see glimpses of beheadings and mass executions, but very little is hinted at about the extent of rape.

I've never been particularly cognisant of this chapter in history, and it seems that Rabe has been an under-appreciated hero, despite his Nazi-party affiliations. Mind you, he hadn't lived in Germany for some thirty years prior and after his return to his homeland, he was silenced by the Nazis, had his diaries confiscated, and died a pauper in 1950. However, he remains a well-known hero in China.

The film benefits from an international cast, many of whom I recognised in films from their respective countries. Much of the dialogue is in English. I'm in no position to judge the film's historical accuracy, but it succeeded in prompting me to do some cursory research on its content. John Rabe's wins include best film and best actor at the German Film Awards.

Gravity
This is a strange film, strange as in I can't quite work out what the director is trying to achieve. A sociopathic bank loans officer experiences an existential crisis after a customer blows out his brains during a meeting with him, and takes to part-time crime with a former associate, while simultaneously trying to reignite an old relationship with a woman who he's been stalking.

The film looks nice enough, the acting is certainly adequate, but the story is just weird. It plays out mostly as drama and thriller but it doesn't quite cut it as either genre because there's a strong level of unreality (largely due to massive implausibilities), and one senses there's an attempt at black comedy, perhaps styled on the Coen brothers. The film is clearly aimed at a young, hip audience, evidenced by the music choices and other visual elements but there's still something not quite right. Comedy works best when it's based on fundamental reality but this film seems to ignore human psychology with characters, reactions and scenarios not feeling quite real.

The film makes some social commentary in passing, like equating business with crime, but is never - to it's credit - didactic. I think to enjoy it, one has to really suspend disbelief to a degree that some might find difficult. It will probably appeal to the target audience of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Like that film, for me this feels better suited for television. It's OK for a debut feature, and it'll be interesting to see what Erlenwein does next.

Whisky with Vodka
This is quite an endearing film about film-making that is like a cross between Catherine Breillat's Sex is Comedy and Mia Hansen-Løve's Father of My Children. Like Breillat's film, the film depicts the difficulty a director (and indeed, the whole film crew) experiences dealing with actors. And like Father of My Children, the film depicts the difficulties for the producer.

In Whisky with Vodka which, despite its description as a comedy is more drama with just a touch of wry comedy, a film's completion is threatened when it's aging and popular lead actor can't control his fondness for alcohol. The producers insist on two shoots, one with the original actor, Otto Kullberg (Henry Hübchen), and one with the possible replacement, a younger Arno Runge (Markus Hering).

The director Martin Telleck (Sylvester Groth) objects to this scenario, insisting he's "not a bucket for everyone to shit in". The film manages to both entertain without falling into parody (which it easily could have done) and remain thought-provoking. There are a number of good lines in which characters describe their craft. The film also gives a glimpse at how one person's ego can cause grief to dozens of others, and how dysfunctional an environment a film set can be. The characterisations and scenarios are very good. I found the film quietly satisfying.

The Wolves of Berlin: Part One - Nothing Can Part Us
The Wolves of Berlin is a three-part made-for-TV miniseries that centres on life in Berlin at three important points in time: 1948, 1961 and 1989. I've only seen the first episode, but I can say that it's well put together and looks good on the big screen. I hope to see the remaining episodes during the festival.

The story follows a group of teenagers in post-war Berlin, struggling for survival and who make a pact to stick together. The film focuses on the personal impact of the changes that were taking place at the time, as Berlin was divided into four sectors and blockaded.

The film has a clever visual style - sometimes black and white, sometimes slightly tinted and other times muted colour. Inserted from time to time is historical footage, also of varying qualities, which appears organic to the rest of the film. It lends an authentic and pleasing feel to the film. Because the film opens in the present, in a tense situation, we know there's bad blood, some of which will be divulged in later episodes. Recommended viewing.

Storm
This political thriller by German director, Hans-Christian Schmid, illustrates some of the difficulties in bringing war criminals to justice. Here, a former Serbian officer is accused of atrocities against Bosnian civilians. With an international cast, the predominant language is English and centres on a Hague prosecutor Hannah Maynard (Kerry Fox) in her oft-thwarted attempts to collect evidence. It also features Anamaria Marinca (4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days) in a convincing role as a surviving witness.

Storm has a social-realist feel to it, underscored by lots of hand-held camera (slightly more shaky than required, but not fatally so) and has a feel to it more akin to films of this genre from Latin America than Europe. The film's arc is quite relevant, especially given recent attempts to bring an alleged war criminal to trial from Australia. One problem the film points out is that such people are often considered war heroes in their native lands. This is a solid film without being showy.

Vision
Margarethe von Trotta has had some hits (The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum, 1975) and misses (I Am the Other Woman, 2006). This latest film, an historical biopic, falls more into the camp of the former. It's beautifully photographed, depicting the life of a twelfth century Christian mystic and prominent author, Hildegarde of Bingem. Tithed to a monastery at the age of eight, she eventually became the leader of her nun community and went on to found two other monasteries.

Vision underscores for me how much suffering the Christian church (and religion in general) has forced upon humanity. It's not really religion to blame per se, but human nature, which uses religion as an excuse for inexcusable behaviour - and not much has changed over the millennia.

Different schools of Christianity developed over time that speculated or concocted their own brands of the central teachings. Some (as depicted in this film) felt it a virtue to punish themselves by flagellation, "to suffer as Christ did". Others focused on theological or intellectual studies while others became involved in dastardly Inquisitorial 'activities'.

Hildegarde was very fortunate to escape the latter, after her revelation of mystic visions. Many thousands of others perished throughout the Middle Ages (from around Hildegarde's time, and especially during the reign of Pope Gregory IX, 1227-1241). Perhaps what saved her was her noble background and the support she had from prominent members of the Church.

Von Trotta does a good job of telling the story, though a bit of restraint in pointing out the obvious would have been welcome. Other than The White Ribbon, this has the best visuals of any film that I've previewed from the festival.

The White Ribbon
This Haneke film was my favourite at MIFF last year and also made it into my list of top films of the year. It's simply stunning and demonstrates a master film-maker at the peak of his game. I love how Haneke creates a riveting human story which is about what it appears to be about, and yet there is so much important sub-text which doesn't consume or overwhelm the primary story. It may well be that Haneke's underlying themes are more important to him than the apparent story, but it's never didactic. This is in direct contrast with Lioret's recent Welcome. Here are my original comments about the film, posted during MIFF last year:

The White Ribbon is perhaps Michael Haneke's most mature and entrancing film. That's quite some claim, given the awesome body of work he has created (in my mind, there is no such thing as a bad Haneke film). It encompasses or flirts with a number of themes and genres already covered in his earlier films (such as social realism, horror, crime, thriller, supernatural), perhaps playing with our expectations and yet subverting them, but never in a cheap, contrived manner. Haneke plays it straight with the audience, but you never really know where he's going. What's important with this film is to focus not on the destination, but the journey.

This is a film in which you really need to concentrate, take note of who is who (and there's a lot of people to keep a track of) and which children belong to who. There's also a lot of children, who play some stunning roles. Some of them may be victims, some of them innocent bystanders and some of them something more sinister. If evil exists, can you blame the children? Or the often well-meant but deluded parents. Some of the imagery used is amazing, in particular the chastised boy with the simple cross on the wall behind him. Many times the camera takes a point of view shot to very good effect. The characterisations, period detail and reproduction of mannerisms and social mores are all at the very highest levels of achievement and it's not hard to see why this film was awarded Cannes' highest honour.

The story is superficially much more conventional than one associates with Haneke. At first it seems a slightly rambling, rustic, rural tale. A subversion of expectations? Maybe.

Eventually, like Hidden, the film has something to say about politics, and more besides. There are broadsides at religion and society in general. At the outset of the start of World War I, Haneke seems to suggest that the brutality of the next two wars over thirty years could perhaps be traced to the cruel ways that humans treat each other on the micro level: within villages, communities and families. The film is shot in black and white, a bold choice by Haneke, but it works very well. It resembles a Carl Dreyer film (think Gertrude) or even Bergman.

The Festival of German Films screens in Melbourne at the Kino and Como cinemas from 22 April to 2 May.

Cross-posted on Club Troppo