Little visual tricks can't hide the thinness of the script

Donna 2022-04-19 09:03:02

German director Christian Petzold, who has always been good at shooting historical and political themes, unexpectedly turned to the love genre in his new work "Wendini", which was shortlisted for the Berlin competition this year, but there are actually traces to follow when you think about it . Previously, in his three representative works "Barbara", "Phoenix" and "Transit", what made people relish is the story of the struggle of human nature under the background of magnificent history. The three works are always inseparable from the feelings of men and women. Lines, and all focus on the heroine: a nurse who gave up her freedom for love during the Cold War in East and West Germany, a Jewish woman who returned to her hometown after World War II to meet her husband again, and even a mysterious woman wandering on the European continent under the confusion of time and space background. And this new work is a rare contemporary story by directors, but it is not the kind of routine that is crazy. This is a love story implanted with mythology. There are many shooting techniques for similar themes, either highlighting the intense emotional relationship between man and god, or Hollywood's special effects-focused spectacle blockbuster, like Petzold This is the first time I have seen such a light and suspenseful presentation.

In the film, the heroine repeatedly shows the model of the origin of the city of Berlin and the explanation of the East and West German architectural styles in the museum. I believe this part is the only amazing part of the film. The director tries to connect the origin of Berlin (water and swamps) with the identity of the heroine (she is the elf in the water), and also sets the work of the hero to be closely related to water. Unfortunately, this fascinating historical legend has not been incorporated into this love-type text. It just throws out a tempting concept in the first half, and the result is nothing. On the contrary, Petzold's author's label style and techniques are becoming more and more distinct. The same piano piece is used as the soundtrack, and the ghostly drifting perspective easily creates a strange feeling in the quiet and elegant rhythm. The most striking thing is to use the same camera angle and camera position to show the behavior of the hero and heroine in key scenes successively, which is undoubtedly a copy of the technique in "Transit". This kind of visual trick can only show the director's superb skills, but it is difficult to hide the frailty of the script.

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Extended Reading
  • Reagan 2022-03-03 08:01:23

    Ancient legends and cities that have undergone many changes have created such a film full of mystery and romance under the lens of Petzold. I believe that several scenes that can be called magic strokes will still make me reminisce after the festival is over. It's also a love story about water, I don't know where it is higher than "The Shape of Water"

  • Reagan 2022-04-24 07:01:24

    3.5, still melodrama, but with a refinement that the director has never had before, a few simple scenes are repeated repeatedly, and the connection between plot and space can be established (same as the heroine's occupation). Alas, the hyperreal connection is far from intuitive and clumsy.