Lara

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.

A reflection on maturity and the balances it inevitably provokes, the choices, good or bad, that determine the unfolding of a life, the people who, for better or worse, influence them, the regrets, the disappointments and the projections of unfulfilled dreams in others, particularly in children.

The main message is positive, that only by taking risks can goals be achieved. The general tone, however, is dark, marked by the compunction of someone who proved incapable of taking the risk at the right moment and dragged revolt into her life and that of everyone around.

However, it is precisely this austerity and this degree of demand, which make her life so unbearable, that also built an image of respect and admiration in others, capable of instilling excellence and perfectionism around her.

Life is made of contradictions. The destruction of the dreams of some allows the construction and realization of the dreams of others.

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.

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.

It makes sense that the same person responsible for Oh Boy is responsible for this. Not because the movies are the same or similar in that sense, but that they are both good. And this follow up is quite something - this time around it is a woman who is front and center ... and boy is she flawed ... no pun intended.

So many really good performances - and I don't say that lightly when it comes to German movies. While I generally am "known" for being too nice when it comes to rating movies (in general, I can be harsh too), I am quite critical of German efforts and mostly am not convinced when it comes to performances in the German language ... that makes me even more excited when it comes to movie like this one here.

To say that Lara is a flawed human being ... a broken one and one that commits and makes many mistakes would be quite the understatement. But that is also what makes her and the movie so interesting ... very well done indeed ...