jiri-severa

This is a little gem of a film with the rarest touches and subtlety. Set in 1980, its protagonist, Barbara, is a physician sent to work in a clinic in the North of East Germany as a punishment for applying for exit visa to the West. She is being closely monitored by the Stasi (communist secret police) and reports on her are written from the hospital by a young head doctor.

Having decided to escape East Germany to be with her lover in Denmark and quickly figuring out her superior André has been assigned to spy on her, Barbara is testy and cool to his advances, as she is overcome by bitterness to the regime that mistreats and humiliates her. But in time she discovers André is a strong, gentle, sincere character and that his dedication to medicine matches her own. She becomes torn between her desire to leave and the suddenly erupting strong feelings for him. The acting by the mercurial Nina Hoss (as Barbara) quiet, confident Ronald Zehrfeld (as André) is exceptional and some of their interactions show brilliant edge and deep reading of character. Well worth seeing how this plays out.

I was touched by the movie even though the script was not what it could have been and some of the interactions (Farneh x Habibeh, Habibeh x Morteza) seemed too contrived and over-scripted. I am not sure whether this carried over from the novel or originated in the movie script. But the story overall is compelling and has an unmistakable feel of reality. The cruelty and moral corruption rings true and obviously is not something that comes from any particular ideology or religion. Some people in times of chaos, social upheavals or revolutions turn into animals and find all sorts of pseudo-moral excuses for being that way. Times of disorder will always invite rapine, settling of personal accounts and revolting inhumanity. Adrien Brody as Isaac and Alon Aboutboul as his jailer and interrogator were excellent. Their interaction make the film well worth while seeing.