Gebürtig

Robert Schindel's novel "Gebürtig" includes a highly complex mix of characters all dealing with their past. It is told from different points of view, in different literary styles. It is very difficult to transfer this heterogenous web to the screen. The author and his friend Lukas Stepanik have tried, and as expected, they succeeded in some respects and failed in others.

On the whole, the film turned out rather confused. Some messages are made very clear, others remain MESSages. The acting is good, even excellent in some cases, and the Polish actor Daniel Olbrychski manages to give a perfect, absolutely transparent and convincing portray of the story's most interesting character, the German journalist Konrad Sachs.

This film adaptation is not perfect but okay. Read the book first.

This is a great setting and subject matter for a film. The perspective is very unique and the story is human and compelling. The problem is that the film has a really confusing screenplay. In all honesty the story ... originally a book ... is just too complex for the screen and this was a big challenge for the Directors.

But don't let the complexity keep you from watching the film! More so consider watching a second time after you establish who is who and where they came from. This is a film that frames the Holocaust and Vienna very well and it will appeal to those who appreciate WW2 Holocaust genre.

7 of 10 ... takes a bump for bad screenplay ... could have been magnificent.