Jenseits der Stille

German films are like a tombola.You pull a lottery ticket and mostly its waste money. But sometimes you have luck and your ticket is the jackpot. Caroline Link,the director,from Bad Nauheim,my home town,is with Tom Tykwer and Hans-Christian Schmid the only hope for the german film. It was her first film for the cinema and then it was nominated for the golden globe. Its a wonderful film. You can love,hate,dream,cry and laugh. The protagonists are all very believeable. Mrs.Link doesn t need any special effects or optical drumbaborium to tell her story. One newspaper wrote,as good as candle-light,and thats the perfect description of the film. And I want to add,as soft as snow-flakes.

"Beyond Silence" is a tender look at the rift which develops between a young girl and her deaf parents as she and her interest in the clarinet grow. The film delivers it's story with a soft touch, avoiding extremes while maintaining an earnest sense of legitimacy. Excepting a few minor glitches, the film is technically and artistically well done, the acting good, the directing superb, and the story warm and thoughtful. A worthwhile watch.

I think this is a GREAT film, and a wonderful piece of artwork. A very touching story between Lara and her parents. By the end I was weeping I was so touched ( and I don't cry easily at movies ). The Deaf culture is one very few of us take time to understand, but I think through films we can at least try. I HIGHLY recommend this film to anyone who is interested in Deaf culture, or just a great foreign film.

"Beyond Silence" is the story of a young girl who is a musical prodigy, but her parents have no appreciation for her talents because they are deaf. Immediately you can see how this brilliantly summarizes the plight of so many youngsters, across all generations, whose hopes and dreams fall on deaf ears. In that sense, this film applies to all of us regardless of whether we play music or grow up dealing with disabilities in the family. This story is universal and timeless.

Excellently acted all around (with the 2 deaf parents played by actors who are deaf in real life), I think the character who steals the show is the young girl Lara, age 7ish, played by Tatjana Trieb. She is intelligent and clever, often manipulating the situation to her benefit in a cheeky way (for example, acting as translator between her parents and her teachers but only translating what she wants them to know). In a subtle way, it sets the tone that our young protagonist is not a victim but rather a rebel who is willing to stand up for herself. Thus, even though the plot may seem like a frustrating ride, it's actually the opposite. The young girl is the one who's in control most of the time.

The story then jumps ahead several years with the role of Lara being assumed by Sylvie Testud, whom you may recognize from her role in "La Vie en Rose" 10 years after this. The young adult Lara is now living in Berlin and navigating her life away from her family, but there are complications. Enter the aunt, "Clarissa" (Sibylle Canonica) who is a complex character suffering from a host of mental issues due to always playing second fiddle to her deaf brother (Lara's father). As we see Clarissa become increasingly unhinged, possibly manipulating Lara's career for her own interests, the story takes on a deeper layer. It's this 2nd plot--relating to the collateral damage that a disability has on other family members--that really spices up the story.

"Beyond Silence" lots of food for thought, regardless of whether your life mirrors the lives of these characters. It's a thick family drama that revolves around the emotional friction within a family when people don't "hear" each other, literally or figuratively.

Contrary to previous comments, sign language is NOT the same around the world. It is true that American Sign Language and French Sign Language are quite similar; this is because one of the first teachers of the deaf in the United States was a Frenchman, Laurent Clerc. However, at the the present time, French and American Sign Languages only have about 50% lexical similarity. Additionally, although German Sign Language is somewhat similar to other European sign languages, it is not related to ASL at all.

The sign language used by the little girl in this movie is German Sign Language. Her father is played by an American deaf man and her mother is played by a French deaf woman; their signing in German Sign Language is understandably accented.

For the record, I am a certified interpreter in American Sign Language.