Family Dinner

At the end of the Lenten fast, a plump girl visits her aunt, an expert cook, at her remote farmhouse, where things seem a little ... off.

Grimm's fairy-tale meets mild body-horror. The narrative is kinda plain - if you substitute a wicked witch in a house in the forest, you're most of the way there. But the body-horror aspect is dignified by associations with the sacrifice of Jesus and the notion of cannibalism as a rite of rebirth, plus an unfussy portrait of animal death. Not really my genre, but in this form more 'tasteful' than the lurid stuff that's been a staple of French and Canadian films for decades.

The pace is sedate, the performances reserved, and the music is barely perceptible, just nudging us into a sense of dread. At times the intimacy of the whispered voices is intense, a nice effect. But the standout for me is the character of Simi, who has an intriguing mix of impassive innocence and savage resilience.

This is an Austrian production, and I have to say their Slavic neighbours do this kind of macabre with a greater sense of wonder and mystery - and humour. And a final oddity is that the German word Schei*e is translated into a more forceful word in English.

Overall: Simple story that just about fills its dress.

P.s. I do practice fasting and low-carb, and it's clear the writer didn't think to do his research.

I wouldn't consider this a real horror movie, it's more of a slow paced psychological thriller with some horror elements towards the third act. Usually I'm not a big fan of slow-paced movies but since this was an Austrian horror movie which we don't see a lot from I was intrigued.

It follows Simi, an overweight teenager who's staying at her aunts farm in her holidays. Her aunt is a famous writer and nutrition expert and is teaching Simi a lot about eating healthy. The aunt portrayed by Pia Hierzegger immediately has a weird presence and also her husband Stefan sometimes just seems too nice and is creating an uncomfortable sexual tension between the teenager and him. He also doesn't seem to like the aunts son Filipp. Filipp is acting creepy and keeps weirding out Simi even telling her that he thinks that his mother has evil plans for him. The movie slowly makes its tension-filled way towards the final act where you get the answer to your questions. Some might say it was predictable but I still enjoyed it and think it was a decent watch. [5,6/10]

One will need subtitles, as the film is in German. Aunt Claudia and Uncle Stefan and son Philipp live on an isolated farm in the countryside. Simi, a bit overweight is to visit and arrives the Tuesday before Easter, thinking she would stay through Easter. But she is informed that Easter is a very special and private time, and they didn't expect her to stay that long. Claudia is a nutrition expert, and puts Simi on a diet. Diet is the wrong term, as it is to be NO food until Easter, and she is then invited to stay longer. She has to share the room with Filipp, and it is clear he doesn't like her. Claudia says he has a personality disorder and often runs away. It is slow paced, very moody, and there are many undercurrents to the story. As Easter approaches, Stefan says he doesn't agree with the entire ritual, but it is very important to Claudia, so Simi should just go along with it. I can't really consider it a horror movie in the true sense, as there are no jump scares or other things associated with horror movies. It is decent movie, well acted but not really special.

The film was advertised as a domestic horror film and the mood and the location was very well met. In terms of action, the whole film takes place on a farm in the countryside (Lower Austria), the actors are all very convincing and were well chosen. Pia Hierzegger is of course fantastic as the aunt, very believable.

The label horror film is too strong for me, although it certainly fits into the genre, but measured against today's usual horror films, the film is already rather harmless, more psychological thriller. Also, the film offers little surprising.

The story: overweight teenager Simi visits aunt Claudia, a nutrition expert, in the countryside (with hopes to be helped with dieting), with (newly married) uncle Stefan and cousin Fillip (from the first marriage of the aunt). Simi feels uncomfortable from the beginning, the cousin a creep, the aunt strict, the uncle too nice?

I felt they got inspired by films like "Get Out," "The Wicker Man," as well as some Hammer films from the sixties. Without giving more away, you definitely guess what the whole thing is leading up to in the course of the film. That's what I meant by unsurprising. I was missing a twist that would change your view of the story and question your perception, so to speak, but that twist doesn't come. Conclusion: well done, but not top notch.

Who cares what genre it is; it's a combination of all three, and while you've seen films with similar plot lines like this before, you know what to expect and even how it might turn out, but it's still worth the watch to get there.

This is a slow burn film, with no wasted scenes or padding, with believable and sympathetic actors, and you don't really have to suspend disbelief because the girl and the boy act like real kids would act around parents and adults. True, the girl is a bit smarter at the end than you may have thought she should be, but since it's only one small contrivance, it was acceptable as it was needed to get to a satisfying conclusion.