Schicksal am Lenkrad

Its always a pleasure to discover a hidden gem, forgotten by time and cultural relevance.

Thankfully "Filmarchiv Austria" presented a super clean 35mm version to a relatively small but eager audience who was in the mood to discover a small austrian miracle of a film.

"Schicksal am Lenkrad" is best described as the austrian version of Truffauts "400 Blows" but in a more optimistic and sentimental way, with a edge on your seat racing sequence at the end which made the audience audibly cheer, thanks to its truly investing story and characters. Franzl portrayed by Winfried Schatz is in my eyes a highlight, definitely one of my favorite characters in the "Coming of Age" genre.

This is by no means a masterpiece but its such a charming, innocent and well made film that you cant help but go out of it with a big smile on your face and a warm fuzzy feeling in your stomach.