Propellerblume

A romantic drama this with a familiar theme and very few surprises. Claudia an opera enthusiast dedicates her life to singing in the hope that one day she may win a scholarship to Rome. Claudia's somewhat boring relationship with Stephan soon breaks down when she is mesmerised by Paul a free-spirited photographer full of fun and devilment. Claudia however soon learns that no-one is perfect and people must be accepted for what they are. Lanky long-legged Uwe Rathsam as the sexy photographer Paul with a clouded past provides plenty of fun in his amiable way. Claudia who is ecstatic at a way of life she has never known before enters into the spirit of the occasion, but soon becomes aware that pleasures have their price! Opera lovers will probably appreciate the intense training and discipline that singers have to endure. I found the Cosi Fan Tutti arias not particularly melodious, but (clever scriptwriting here) the words Claudia sang mirrored the kind of life she was leading...."Deceiving one and giving another joy...." The outcome of the final adjudication for the scholarship was not unexpected. Indeed much of the film is predictable, It's a light-hearted film acted with sincerity and easy to watch, but will not set your head spinning like the whirligig novelty featured in a couple of scenes.

Claudia is an beautiful unknown opera singer, (played by Vasiliki Roussi) who is training for an upcoming audition. She has been living for two years with Stephan, a stable, reliable person who represents a secure future for her, but who is so full of what he wants that he can't quite hear what she wants, or even help her decide what it is.

She meets Paul, a wild, reckless, irresponsible boyish man who represents freedom and passion to her. He takes her to a party, and gives her a whirligig, which, when it spins, reveals a beautiful flower in its centre. His recklessness gets them caught "in flagrante" and she gets thrown out of her home.

She moves in with Paul, but quickly discovers that he isn't quite right for her either, so when Stephan misses her terribly and tries to win her back, she is torn between the two. By the time of her greatest triumph, the audition, she loses both of them, and has no-one to share her great moment with.

At one stage, she is training her voice by singing in a graveyard, as she has nowhere else to go, and the gravedigger points to the gravestones and tells her, very significantly, "Only these people here know where they really belong!"

The guy who lives in the flat next to Paul's is a musician, and one day plays loud music. She can't sleep with that racket, and pounding on the wall isn't loud enough to make him hear, so she sings to fight back with loudness of her own.

He plays back, and within a few moments, in one of the most moving moments in film history, the two strangers find themselves in perfect harmony, making beautiful music together. She sings her favourite song, which happens to be one that he wrote, and there is mutual sensitivity and respect, even though they can't see each other's face. Later they refer to it as "their song".

And just when you're still reeling from that profound moment, so perfectly portrayed by the director, Gitta Gsell, along comes another! Claudia dances around Paul's now-empty flat, and it's actually the most beautiful dancing I have ever seen in a film! The combination of the incredible direction, the surrounding sights and sounds, and her body movements, give the impression of angelic artistry and expression of the language of the soul. It's a good thing it was captured on film, so that future generations can experience it.

Although the film has a thoroughly satisfying ending, (no, I haven't even hinted at it, and if you tried to guess, you'd be wrong!) it's that dance which is the most important thing in the film, and the rest of the film, as great as it is, is nevertheless the vehicle for that wonderful dance of the soul.