Mare

Mare lives an ordinary life in the rural part of Croatia. She loves her family, but she also strives for more freedom and self-determination. Her husband works at the local airport, but nevertheless, Mare has never flown anywhere her entire life. Similarly, her family life is not satisfying and it gets quite stressful with three teenage children and a husband that is not the best at communicating. When a young man suddenly enters Mare’s life, he reanimates her joie de vivre and consequently turns her world upside down.

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Marija Škaričić

The ‘Zürcher Hochschule der Künste’ graduate Andrea Štaka (Das Fräulein, Hotel Belgrad) writes and directs her fourth feature film and reunites with Marija Škaričić (A Wonderful Night in Split, What is a man without a Moustache?) as the lead. Marija Škaričić won best actress for her performance in Andrea Štaka’s Das Fräulein at the Sarajevo Film Festival.

Mare premiered at the 70th Berlin Film Festival in the Panorama Section. The film was shot in a small town of Dubrovnik in Croatia and a Swiss-Croatian production.

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Director Andrea Štaka

Even though I usually enjoy slow-paced films, I could not help but feel a bit bored with Mare. There is quite a bit of repetition of similar scenes that capture the mundanity of everyday life, but ultimately are rather meaningless to the overall story. This gave me the impression of simply ‘filling up time’ instead of moving the characters or the plot along. The performances from the primary and secondary characters were all fine. I was positively surprised by the actor that played Mare's oldest son, who kept on walking the thin line of almost over-acting without ever actually fully crossing it.

As the first few scenes of the film play out, you might wonder why it looks so old and grainy. Turns out the film was entirely shot on 16mm film on the Arri 416. The aesthetic grew on me and gave it the raw realness Štaka was going for.

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Marija Škaričić, Goran Navojec

I left the cinema rather disappointed for a reason that I cannot fault the movie too much. It is, however, a slight spoiler, so if you wish to go into this without knowing anything more then the premise, skip ahead to the rating now. 

There is no real conclusion to the main conflict. All parties are just there - partly aware of what is going on - and then it just ends. I get that the inconclusiveness of an open-end is supposed to reflect real life, but I find it frustrating after seeing plenty of thematically similar scenes that were leading to a more active confrontation. 

If you enjoy slow-paced films with down-to-earth realistic characters then Mare just might be for you.

The film will be in Swiss theatres on March 12th.

★★⋆☆☆

Film Date: Director: Andrea Štaka - Writer: Andrea Štaka - Cast: Marija Škaričić Goran Navojec Mateusz Kościukiewicz Mirjana Karanović Ivana Roščić Zdenko Jelčić - 84’ - Croatia/Switzerland - 2020 - Distributor (CH): Frenetic Films

Photos and Video rights: FRENETIC FILMS and Ona Pinkus

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  • Feb 18, 2020 Moskau Einfach! (One Way to Moscow) - English + German Review Feb 18, 2020

Moskau Einfach! (One Way to Moscow) - English + German Review

One-way to Moscow - English

Against the backdrop of the secret-files-scandal of 1989, Lewinsky succeeded in making an actually funny comedy. For an hour and a half, I had my *very Swiss* parents in the cinema next to me cackling at things they recognize from “the old times” and gushing about polit-gossip from “back in the day”. Hilarious (not so much for some of the other viewers shushing them – which might or might not have been me). 

Viktor Schuler, a Swiss police officer, is sent off on an undercover mission in the Zurich Schauspielhaus, where he is supposed to spy upon the theatre ensemble who is allegedly planning some dangerous demonstration against Switzerland. Because naturally artists and actors are all anarchists and are of course secretly terrorists. (The Swiss at that time were afraid of the Russians and wanted to "protect" Switzerland from turning into a totalitarian dictatorship - by spying on more than 900.000 people in their daily lives and creating files of them to oversee their every move, because whoever had a leftist political opinion was THE ENEMY). During the course of his mission, Viktor is then forced to question his and others’ ideologies after he meets the spirited actress Odile who seems to show him an alternate reality of what he and the world could be. 

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However, at different points in the second half of the film, it felt like a bad Hollywood rom-com. The emotionality and sappiness were over the top. I felt like the audience in the Schauspieltheater during the recital of the ensemble’s play - who was ooh-ing and aww-ing at the impromptu love scene between Victor/Walo and Odile - was the exact same as the audience who sat in the cinema with me tonight. So I guess Lewinsky actually managed to pull off a realistic portrait of my country, with all the things I hate about it included. 

It would have been of interest to show less of the over-stylised love story and more of the secret-files-scandal or more of the comedy. Or just make it less emotional, but I guess that might just be my taste getting in the way of objectivity here. The film doesn’t need to make the polit-historical backdrop the main thing in this movie. The aim of this film was, I believe, to create a comedy set at that time. And that it did perfectly fine. 

At this point, I want to compliment the film on its cinematography. Some shots are genuinely nicely done,  to watch. The coloring and tone of the movie are aesthetically pleasing. 

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I believe that this movie is enjoyable even if you’re not Swiss. However, knowing the country and its customs – sometimes quirky, odd and yes, frustrating, but I shouldn’t make this a sociological analysis – is certainly a plus when watching this. A film such as Bong Joon-Ho’s Parasite may just as well be as international but seems more approachable or even universal than Moskau Einfach in its themes and conventions (Yes, I know you can’t compare these two movies).

So, go watch this if you’re Swiss – always fun to see what your own country is up to – or go see it if you’re not Swiss but want to acquire some new material to mock Switzerland with. It’s got all the clichés you will already have heard of (sketchy bank deals, funny language, laughable policemen, all the red tape) and even more to stock up on. 

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Moskau Einfach – Deutsch

Mit dem Fichen-Skandal von 1989 als Hintergrund schafft es Micha Lewinsky eine tatsächlich unterhaltende Komödie zu schaffen. Meine Eltern, selbst zu dieser Zeit in der Schweiz gross geworden, haben während den ganzen eineinhalb Stunden Laufzeit über „die guten alten Zeiten“ getuschelt und über die Politdramen der Zeit getratscht. Für alle Involvierten äusserst amüsant wahrscheinlich, für alle Anderen, unter Anderem für diejenigen, die ihnen böse Blicke zuwarfen (mag ich selbst gewesen sein) vermutlich weniger. 

Viktor Schuler ist ein Schweizer Polizist und wird gedrängt, illegal im Zürcher Schauspielhaus ein Theater-Ensemble zu bespitzeln, das angeblich einen gefährlichen Plot gegen die Regierung plant. Denn, allbekannt, sind ja Künstler und Schauspieler alle Anarchisten und darum sehr wahrscheinlich auch Terroristen. Die Schweiz., um diese Zeit, hatte Angst vor den „bösen“ Russen und wollten sie „beschützen“ vor der anscheinend imminenten Gefahr eine totalitäre Diktatur zu werden. So nahm die Regierung es auf sich, heldenhaft 900'000 Menschen abzuhören und sie im privaten Leben zu überwachen – für die allgemeine Sicherheit im Land – wobei sie Akten von vor allem links-politischen Personen zusammenstellten, die sogenannten Fichen. Während seiner Ermittlung sieht sich Viktor gezwungen, seine und andere Ideologien zu hinterfragen. Er lernt die Schauspielerin Odile Lehmann kennen, die ihm zeigt, was er und die Welt sein könnten.

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Die Komödie ist durchaus gelungen, jedoch fühlte sich der zweite Hälfte des Films an wie eine schlechte Hollywood Rom-Com. Der Handlungsbogen der Liebesgeschichte wird überspitzt emotional und kitschig dargestellt. Das Publikum im Schauspielhaus Zürich, das bei der Premiere überschwänglich mitklatschte und mitfühlte bei der Liebesszene zwischen Odile und Viktor, war dasselbe wie bei mir im Kino. Insofern müsste man zugeben, dass Lewinsky hier die Schweiz artgerecht darzustellen wusste. 

Man hätte hierbei die überschwängliche Liebesgeschichte reduzieren können und mehr Fichen-Skandal und Füdlibürgertum hineinmischen können. Aber ich denke, hier steht mein eigener Geschmack meiner Objektivität im Weg. Allgemein ist der Mix gut gelungen. Es muss keine Aufarbeitung des polit-historischen Fichen-Skandals stattfinden. Das Ziel war es, denke ich, eine Komödie, die sich in dieser Zeit abspielt, zu machen. Und genau das ist es. 

Ich bin mir sicher, dass dieser Film unterhaltsam ist, auch wenn man nicht von der Schweiz ist. Trotzdem macht das Meiste erst Sinn, wenn  man mit der Schweiz vertraut ist. Die biederen Büroangestellten und die sogenannte Bourgeois-Bohème der Schweiz sind Archetypen im Land, genau so wie das Aromat, der TipTopf und das „Beefy“ im Silberkugel fast schon Nationalhelden sind. Der ironische Umgang mit diesen Eigenarten der Schweiz ist eben nur dann effektiv, wenn man sie kennt. 

★★★☆☆

Release Date (Switzerland): 13.02.2020

Film Data: Director: Micha Lewinsky - Writer: Micha Lewinsky Plinio Bachmann Barbara Sommer - Cast: Philippe Graber, Miriam Stein, Mike Müller, Micheal Maertens, Oriana Schrage, Fabian Krüger - 99’ - 2020 - Langfilm

Photo and Video: Copyright © 2020 Vinca Film

Platzspitzbaby - (Needle Park Baby)

Pierre Monnard’s Platzspitzbaby is based on the bestselling 2013 novel of the same name by Michelle Halbheer and Franziska K. Müller. Platzspitzbaby follows eleven-year-old Mia and her drug-addicted mother Sandrine after the closure of the open drug scene in Zurich. The family of two moves from the city to a more rural town but Sandrine’s drug addiction follows them wherever they go. Mia flees into her own fantasy world with an imaginary friend that helps her cope with her mother’s addiction. Mia soon makes friends with the rebellious Lola and her group of friends and decides to stand up for herself against her demanding mother.

Platzspitzbaby is inspired by true events that occurred in the late ’80s in a small park behind the main station in Zurich, Switzerland. Directly behind the federal state museum was the infamous hotspot for drug addicts and drug dealers. It was called the Platzspitz. The misery of the open drug scene with more than 3000 people gathering there daily was frowned upon by the public and neighboring countries which led to a clearance of the Platzspitz in early 1992. The drug scene had to relocate to the surrounding and less public areas instead. But even those places were eventually closed down by the national crackdown on drugs in 1995. This is where the story of Platzspitzbaby picks up.

Slight spoilers ahead.

Luna Mwezi as Mia and Sarah Spale as Sandrine

Mia, played by Luna Mwezi, is the central character of this film and the story is told entirely through her perspective. Although her performance wasn’t always solid and convincing enough to carry the entire film, it was still impressive to watch her portray a character that’s basically the same age as she is. I would have preferred if her character wasn’t written in such a stiff emotional fashion. Mia basically shifts between sad, angry and disappointed, with the occasional glimpse of hope. That wouldn’t be much of a problem if the character’s moments weren’t repeated over and over again without Mia taking anything away from them. Mia never really becomes an active character, she is always just reacting to other characters’ action and when she finally does something on her own, it is limited to her telling her mom she wants to go home.

Not far into the film, we realize that Luna Mwezi is the best performer out of the otherwise lackluster cast. Sarah Spale’s Sandrine was comically bad at times and did not manage to immerse me into the story at all. I always saw the actress rather than the character on the screen, which really didn’t help. The same goes for Anouk Petri’s Lola.

Anouk Petri as Lola and Luna Mwezi as Mia

The plot is not short of clichés and tropes clearly inspired by Hollywood films with a similar subject matter. This is yet another attempt of Swiss cinema trying to replicate Hollywood with a Swiss setting. All the plot points ranging from proving yourself to fit in by doing something crazy to being late for a school performance felt incredibly forced and resulted in the direction becoming muddled and unfocused. This problem becomes even more apparent in amateurish camera work. There are several moments in which the camera goes from handheld to static and back to handheld for no reason. Usually, a change in camera movement is motivated by what’s going on in the scene, but that was not the case in Platzspitzbaby and as it continued to happen it became increasingly frustrating to witness such poor direction. I haven’t even mentioned to the terribly inconsistent imaginary friend that pops up whenever convenient, only to over visualize Mia’s struggle.

Should you see this movie? The film is clearly intended to be watched by a Swiss audience that hasn’t seen a lot of similar movies produced in Hollywood. I’d recommend skipping this one, but if you’re interested in the subject matter Requiem of a Dream is a great alternative.

★★☆☆☆

Platzspitzbaby has a strong performance by the lead Luna Mwezi in an otherwise underwhelming Hollywood inspired drug addict story that spends to much time in cliché subplots and adds a weird singing imaginary side character for no plausible reason.

Swiss Release Date: 16.01.2020

Film data: Director: Pierre Monnard - Writers: Michelle Halbheer, André Küttel - Cast: Sarah Spale, Luna Mwezi, Jerry Hoffmann, Micheal Schertenleib, Jorik Wenger - 2020 - Switzerland - 98 min - C-Films AG

Photos and Video Source: © Ascot Elite Entertainment Group. All Rights Reserved.