Der Boden unter den Füßen

Gifted Austrian Writer/director Marie Kreutzer's coolly austere, immaculately shot 'The Ground Beneath my Feet' aka 'Der Boden unter den Füssen' is a starkly realised, earnestly acted, psychologically dense drama about single-minded, high-flying young business executive Lola Wegenstein (Valarie Pachner), and her older, mentally ill sister Conny (Pia Hierziger), long estranged from one another, Conny's attempted overdose of medication somewhat cruelly reunites them both, and the focused, work-orientated Lola soon becomes profoundly unsettled by her disturbed sibling's continued frantic, inchoate ranting, and as Conny is being treated in a psychiatric unit far from Lola's place of work, the once implacable Lola experiences increasing pressures balancing a demanding, high-pressure job, a passionate relationship with the strikingly beautiful Elise (Mavie Hörbiger), her boss, and weighty concerns for Conny's welfare begins to compound Lola's ever more precarious grip on reality. Director Kreutzer's handsome-looking, richly fascinating film has all the immersive intrigue of a meticulously wrought thriller with the additional ballast of an emotionally edifying drama, the performances are uniformly excellent, with especially forceful work from powerhouse Valarie Pachner, the refined photography is sublime, the frequently muted, glacial colour palate adding an oppressively grim verisimilitude to Lola's unhappy descent in her own rapidly debilitating depression, wherein work, love, and familial bonds start to deleteriously unravel into cognitive chaos. While 'The Ground Beneath my Feet' has an aesthetically cool veneer, it is far a from remote experience, being a nuanced, emotionally intelligent drama that deals explicitly with the devastating effects of mental illness in a bold, and wholly sympathetic manner.

This is a story about a talented, ambitious, and highly defended young woman struggling with her humanity and struggling with whether to let others breach her walls. As those walls begin to crumble, so does she.

Let's dispense with the absurd notion that this is a "lesbian" film. Sure, Lola is in a same-sex relationship. But that no more makes this a lesbian film than her being in a business consulting job makes it a business consulting film. There's no indication whether she identifies as lesbian, or bi, or whatever. It doesn't matter. This is a film about being a human being.

I was pleased to see that Valerie Pachner won the German best actress award for this film. She was terrific.

As a viewer, I was left with the same uncertainty about what was really going on that Lola experienced. This diminished only a little on the second watching. I thought that was kind of cool.

Disclaimer: my opinions are backed up by zero expertise in Film as an art form, and far less than the average layperson's knowledge of movies in general.

The film was trying to criticize the stressful worklife in Germany, same theme as Toni Erdman" movie. I have it 7, because the film is still watchable.

Valerie Pachner was great in this movie, and I recognised her instantly from her other movie by Terrence Mallick of the same year, "A Hidden Life". Theres an intense lesbian relationship in the movie, but I didnt feel it was central to the plot - like you do with so many other movies that feature homosexual relationships. Alot of people should relate to this movie, anyone who has strived to do something against difficult personal circumstances.

This is a gripping, tough movie about the bond between two sisters, focused on the the younger of the two, a hard working business consultant, and how the reality around her erodes as her older sister is treated for mental illness. Valerie Pachner's performance is restrained and subtle. The cinematography is superb, bringing your the cold surfaces of chrome-blue hallways and white institutional walls that contrast with the turmoil that grows within the main character's increasingly tortured psyche. A beautiful, rich film.