Lara Jenkins

A movie about art and music, a movie about education, a movie about believing in yourself and the strength it needs to follow your dreams. Incredible acting, most intense emotions brought to the screen, a script that's both surprising and most of all thought provoking and superb direction, scene after scene really goes under your skin. A movie that will stay with you, very much unlike other movies that are already forgotten when you have left the cinema...

The writing, and the central performance by Corinna Harfouch combine to make this film work. The writing has the qualities of an excellent short story; it builds through character and opens up the themes to the piece by episodes which are proportionate and cohere.

Carrying the film, Harfouch, delivers a nuanced and strong performance in which she seems to have multiple ways to convey pain and regret, disappointment and disillusion. In some key scenes she pivots to pride, and even arrogance, all of which convey the turmoil in the character.

The story is familiar enough and done in a style that is not hackneyed, using other elements, in locations and minor characters, to present the loneliness and failure of Harfouch's character.

An engaging film that is worth seeing again.

The first movie I ever saw at a film festival, albeit it that the Ludwigsburger Lichtspielliebe is a very very new and very very very small and adorable little film festival with only one screening room. But that counts and is all very well done, and the director and lead actor showed up after the film for a fairly lengthy discussion. Lara was one of my most anticipated movies of this year because I love the first film Jan-Ole Gerster did, Oh Boy. This one yet again tells a big story in a down to earth and believable form where the way characters act and speak tells you all you need to know about them, and then some. Yet again it's also about family and being in a bad place in life. Lara, different from his first film, is for a big part about passion and creativity, and it's beautifully directed and written, and of course the performances are great. I'm very happy it turned out so well and hope it won't take Gerster seven years again to put out a new film. I don't know what took him so long, maybe it was just about financing. Anyway, see this one if you can please, it's definitely worth a watch and so full of life, never boring, always being real, and you can tell they really cared about making this as good as it can be. This is a film everyone will be able to get something out of. Fittingly, at one point a character thinks to himself, does the world really need my music or has it been done already and is pointless. I can tell you Lara is thankfully anything but pointless.

Love how they dumb you straight into the situation Also, the strange behavior is nicely done not the classic way but innovative Can really feel the anger of her and unlimited, frustration to the world even tho she tries to fit in the world and politely handle it and if it does not work out she will force it. And she can get regret and feels the need to do something in return due to her behavior. Where she got her character from To unfold plot of the not only of her character, but her social network also (how she looks at other people and how they do it in return, reflecting of it) and the movie plot.

The son have gone through a lot but also the place of her mother. He wants her but also dislike how she is and shows in sadness. It is not that her opinion matters but her exciting matters to him.

Notice that when she is showing too much vulnerability, she feels too fragile and need upper hand by going in the offense, making the other party vulnerable.

You feel the desperation, the support for her son but not showing it and when the time is ticking by it is nice to see how it goes.

Avoiding situations It is strange that being nice to her is not the way to get her affection. She is clearly in need for acknowledgement. When she got, she is relief but also not satisfied enough.

How she make choices is really non conventional.

Really great camera work, especially in the concert moment and the changing room moment.

Acting is nicely done natural.

She mostly does not care about anything and now she sees what her action is doing to others by seeing it due to the thing she cares. Showing undoubt how much Love how the story is being told, and the plot unveiled Really great done, how everything has come together and that her action did matter and is not only destruction but also love and people are not evil.

Very great scene when son and mother after the concert. The interaction is just good done. It shows also finally he is spreading his wing and require his space.

The conversation in the brasserie is good done The flow of the movie is great, with many actions and scenes feeling the tension it is really the work of the actors, of course the great script and director.

The reflecting of her and her whole life in 1 conversation made her changed the perspective of the whole world and her life. So powerful look in the hallway to the restroom.

She knows she needs to move on. That small piece in her life, she thinks she was over it, was something that she did not digest well. An excuse to find, or just coincidence?

Confirming everything.

Excellent cinematography. Very well played by the main actress. A very touching portrait of a broken woman's broken relationship with her son, her life, herself. Very well written to fit a lifetime's key conflict into one single day, one single evening, one single concert.