From the Zeitgeist NW Film Festival come these films, among others.
-- Does any seem worth investing in (for instance, to show at German Club)?
BAIKONUR KAZAKHSTAN/GERMANY/RUSSIA 2011 DIRECTOR: VEIT HELMER
This charming, funny, and visually resplendent romantic comedy by one of
Germany’s most inventive young directors uses as its guiding principle
an old Kazakh proverb that says: “Whatever falls from heaven, you may
keep.” For the inhabitants of a small Kazakh village, especially the
youthful Iskander, living just downwind from the Baikonur Cosmodrome
means that what “falls from heaven” is actually valuable space debris
from the Russian rockets launched there. Nicknamed “Gagarin” after the
Soviet space pioneer, Iskander uses his radio expertise to follow
launches and calculate where to find the cast-off space metals that
provide his village with its livelihood. After seeing a photo of the
young Frenchwoman Julie, due to become the latest space tourist, he is
smitten. When something goes wrong and Julie plunges to earth in a
capsule, Iskander is there to rescue her before the authorities do. And
she has amnesia… (95 mins.) In Russian, French, and English.
TRAILER:
TOM SAWYER GERMANY 2011 DIRECTOR: HERMINE HUNTGEBURTH
Mark Twain’s timeless adventure tale of
two boys, Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, in conflict with the adult
world is given a faithful, refreshing revitalization. Filmed in Germany
and Romania, young actors Louis Hofmann and Leon Seidel put a delightful
spin on this distinctively German vision of a classic American story.
Nominated for a German Film Award for Best Children’s Film. “Outstanding
cast, funny and dynamic.”—Cinema. (110 mins.)
Recommended for ages 8 and up.
TRAILER:
LESSONS OF A DREAM Der ganz grosse Traum GERMANY 2011 DIRECTOR: SEBASTIAN GROBLER
A very traditional German school in 1874 decides to employ a new teacher
of English in order to ensure that some fresh ideas about culture and
life are imparted to the students. The teacher, played by
Daniel Brühl, turns out to be more radical than envisioned by the
principal (played by Burghart Klaussner), as he teaches English culture
by getting them all to play football. In turn, despite the excitement
experienced by the students, the parents and local community are not so
impressed. Reminiscent of the film Dead Poets Society, this stirring
historical drama about the impact a teacher can have on students is a
compelling story with some notable messages about tradition and change.
Nominated for three German Film Awards. (113 mins.) Recommended for ages
10 and up.
TRAILER:
THREE QUARTER MOON Dreiviertelmond GERMANY 2011 DIRECTOR: CHRISTIAN ZÜBERT
Grumpy taxi driver Hartmut Mackowiak is crushed by the news that his
wife of 30 years is leaving him. He is forced to reorganize his life,
becoming even more of a loner. That is, until the day he has the
six-year-old Hayat and her mother as passengers in his taxi. This is the
beginning of a series of events that leave him looking after Hayat,
who, unable to speak any German, is now looking for her mother who has
apparently disappeared. Inevitably, Hartmut initially resists helping
her, but Hayat’s stubbornness leaves him no alternative but to assist
in her search. Little does he realize that perhaps he is on the way to
learning to love life. An endearing, feel-good comedy-drama, THREE
QUARTER MOON proves, without moralizing or sentimentality, that change
is possible no matter what phase of life one is in. (91 mins.)
TRAILER:
SUMMER WINDOW Das Fenster zum Sommer GERMANY 2011 DIRECTOR: HENDRIK HANDLOEGTEN
What would you do if you had the chance to relive part of your life?
That is the premise of this intriguing mystery drama starring Nina Hoss
as a woman who experiences something very unusual. While traveling with
her partner in Finland, Juliane awakens one morning to find herself back
in Berlin. She has traveled back six months in time and experiences
again the events leading up to a tragic situation and a major change in
her life. A film that keeps you guessing as it twists and turns to a
startling conclusion. (96 mins.)
WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
BARBARA GERMANY 2012 DIRECTOR: CHRISTIAN PETZOLD
East Germany, 1980: A doctor is exiled to a country hospital as
punishment for applying for an exit visa. As her lover from the West
carefully plots her escape, Barbara (Nina Hoss) waits patiently and
avoids friendships. She works as a pediatric surgeon under her new boss
André, and while she is caring towards her patients—a young girl in
particular—Barbara keeps a distance from her colleagues. She is
constantly monitored by the state’s security apparatus and is the
subject of repeated humiliations. Barbara looks forward to her future
and to her freedom, but André and a traumatized young patient slowly
chip away at her defenses, and she starts to lose control. A subtle and
precise look at the complex personal costs of life in a paranoid and
repressive state. Winner of the Best Director Award at the Berlin Film
Festival and recipient of seven German Film Award nominations. (105
mins.)
TRAILER:
Spielt noch nicht....
