Michael Haneke directs Dieter Berber, Birgit Doll and Leni Tanzer in this experimental film that explores the true story of a family who abandoned modern life in a cold, incomprehensible way.
A provocative arthouse hit, not for faint hearts or those averse to cinematic risk. The first act avoids showing the leads’ faces almost entirely. We get to know them by their routines and product consumption. A lot of the way through the movie has the look of a dated school textbook. By the last act, as they are tragically checking out of a dehumanising modern grind, you’ll need nerves of steel. It is a truly affecting, gut wrenching denouement. Not anyone’s sane choice for a Friday night entertainment but even more powerful than some of Haneke’s more celebrated big name actor hits.
7
