Finsterworld

A sharp and thoughtful look at contemporary German approach to dealing with the country's weighted past. Finsterwalder crafts the film with strange and yet ordinary moments that make us think about our own morals, expectations, and judgments. We get a glimpse into the life of each character - a mere sketch - (but a very accurate one at that) and that is enough for us to fill in the gaps and relate to them; the viewer need not be of German descent to understand the inherent turmoil present in our parents' and grandparent' generations; it is all very fluid, very grounded, very human. However life is, with its good and its evil, we have to accept it and keep living - somehow, is what she seems to be saying. An excellent, and daring film.

This film tells the stories of a pedicurist, a bird lover, an elderly woman in an old age home, a group of students going for a day trip, a married couple who disliked Germany, a policeman who has a thing for fur, a teacher and a documentary filmmaker. Their lives are very varied but connected in some ways to each other. However, the biggest connection of all is the tragedy of reality. Every character in the film is flawed, and most of them end up in varying degrees of tragedy. It is a captivating film that makes me reflect on life, and appreciate the fact that reality is harsh and unwelcoming. Good things do not necessarily happen to good people is the prominent message.

Despite the depressing content, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this emotionally challenging film.

This is one of those movies where multiple characters weave and interconnect through multiple stories which all reach their dramatic conclusions in a burst of activity at the end of the film. Unfortunately whatever charms this movie has in its first half evaporate in the second, when the director tries to inject a false sense of dramatic weight by having almost every storyline devolve into meanness and tragedy. In the final quarter the movie piles on more and more contrived events and inexplicable reactions from the characters, glossing over the more glaring ones by stuffing them into a where-are-they-now montage at the very end. And even the first half relies a bit much on caricatures, such as the German couple who spend an inordinate amount of time discussing how much they loathe everything German while simultaneously reveling in the wealth Germany's economic might has bestowed on them. If you're really in the mood for this sort of thing go watch Robert Altman's "Short Cuts" instead.

This movie is weird and ordinary at the same time. The viewer is left alone in astonishment, disgust and awe. Highly recommend it, if you want to think about the abyss of mankind and turn towards the sun after just to see it's the little things that count...