This is the long overdue follow up to "Somersault" from Australian director Cate Shortland; an adaptation of a 2001 British novel set in post-war Germany, but unexpectedly filmed entirely in the German language. It follows a group of siblings attempting to cross the ravaged country from the Black Forest to Hamburg after Berlin falls and their parents are arrested for their involvement in the Final Solution. The performances are exceptional, particularly from Saskia Rosendahl as the teenage title character - she undergoes an extraordinary arc from the innocence of youth combined with an innate moral superiority to adulthood and crashing reality as she realises what her Fuhrer and the father she adores have actually done, while trying to survive in a land suddenly lawless and dangerous. Add to that the presence of a young Jew, the only person who can help them survive, who is a man she instinctively hates because of her upbringing but also can't help being attracted to as her sexuality awakens.
It's stunningly shot, all deep forest colours in grainy film stock, and the camera lingers, fascinated by little details of the characters and the landscape they are travelling through alongside the blood and the grime. It's also extremely tense and difficult watch at times, but highly recommended if you like a dose of artistry with your war / coming of age / road movies.
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dombrewer
This is the long overdue follow up to "Somersault" from Australian director Cate Shortland; an adaptation of a 2001 British novel set in post-war Germany, but unexpectedly filmed entirely in the German language. It follows a group of siblings attempting to cross the ravaged country from the Black Forest to Hamburg after Berlin falls and their parents are arrested for their involvement in the Final Solution. The performances are exceptional, particularly from Saskia Rosendahl as the teenage title character - she undergoes an extraordinary arc from the innocence of youth combined with an innate moral superiority to adulthood and crashing reality as she realises what her Fuhrer and the father she adores have actually done, while trying to survive in a land suddenly lawless and dangerous. Add to that the presence of a young Jew, the only person who can help them survive, who is a man she instinctively hates because of her upbringing but also can't help being attracted to as her sexuality awakens.It's stunningly shot, all deep forest colours in grainy film stock, and the camera lingers, fascinated by little details of the characters and the landscape they are travelling through alongside the blood and the grime. It's also extremely tense and difficult watch at times, but highly recommended if you like a dose of artistry with your war / coming of age / road movies.
moviebuff_11
Very good film:http://diegeticdigest.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/lff-lore-review.html