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Berlin International Film Festival · 2019

Berlin International Film Festival 2019

Competition

Programme

23 films · 11 reviews

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Amazing Grace

Review preview for Amazing Grace

One doesn't need to be religious to find something ineffable not just in the music itself but in the way it is expressed.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
Concert film about the recording of Aretha Franklin's Amazing Grace album.

(Country: US; Year: 2018; Director: Sydney Pollack; Stars: Reverand James Cleveland, Aretha Franklin, C.L. Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Bernard Pretty Purdie, Chuck Rainey, Clara Ward, Mick Jagger, Sydney Pollack, Charlie Watts, Reverand James Cleveland, Aretha Franklin, C.L. Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Bernard Pretty Purdie)

Full review

Out of competition

By The Grace Of God

Review preview for By The Grace Of God

Ozon does not smooth over the rough edges and the icy roads stay icy.

Anne-Katrin Titze · 4.5 out of 5
When Alexandre learns that the priest who abused him as a boy is still working with children, he and other victims take action against the perpetrator.

(Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2019; Director: François Ozon; Writer: François Ozon; Stars: Melvil Poupaud, Denis Ménochet, Swann Arlaud, Josiane Balasko, Frédéric Pierrot, Éric Caravaca, Hélène Vincent, Bernard Verley, François Marthouret, François Chattot, Aurélia Petit, John Sehil, Jules Gauzelin, Martine Erhel, Olivier Faliez)

Full review

Elisa And Marcela (Elisa y Marcela)

The story of the first same-sex marriage in Spain.

(Country: Spain; Year: 2019; Director: Isabel Coixet; Writer: Isabel Coixet, Narciso de Gabriel; Stars: Natalia de Molina, Jorge Suquet, Francesc Orella, Lluís Homar, Tamar Novas, Manolo Solo, Greta Fernández, María Pujalte, Sara Casasnovas, Manuel Lourenzo, Amparo Moreno, Elena Seijo, Tania Lamata, Luisa Merelas, Milo Taboada)

Farewell To The Night

Muriel breeds horses and runs an almond plantation. Her beloved grandson Alex, whom she raised, pays her a visit before he travels to Canada. But Muriel finds out that he has another, far more dangerous goal.

(Country: France, Germany; Year: 2019; Director: André Téchiné; Writer: Amer Alwan, Léa Mysius, Léa Mysius, André Téchiné, André Téchiné, André Téchiné; Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Kacey Mottet Klein, Oulaya Amamra, Kamel Labroudi, Stéphane Bak, Catherine Deneuve, Kacey Mottet Klein, Oulaya Amamra, Kamel Labroudi, Stéphane Bak)

Ghost Town Anthology (Répertoire des villes disparues)

Review preview for Ghost Town Anthology

The bleak chill of the Quebecois winter seeps into the very bones of Denis Côté's latest film, giving a sense of aching longing to the action.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
After a man dies in a car accident, time seems to lose all meaning for the residents of a small town... and then strangers begin to appear.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2019; Director: Denis Côté; Writer: Denis Côté; Stars: Robert Naylor, Diane Lavallée, Rémi Goulet, Jocelyne Zucco, Josée Deschênes, Jean-Michel Anctil, Rachel Graton, Hubert Proulx, Normand Carrière, Larissa Corriveau, Robert Naylor, Diane Lavallée, Rémi Goulet, Jocelyne Zucco, Josée Deschênes)

Full review See: Denis Côté on the allegorical nature of Ghost Town Anthology and why he’s not interested in making masterpieces

God Exists Her Name Is Petrunya (Gospod postoi, imeto i' e Petrunija)

Satire charts what happens when a woman catches a holy cross in a contest that is usually the province of men.

(Country: Republic of Macedonia, Belgium, France, Croatia, Slovenia; Year: 2019; Director: Teona Strugar Mitevska; Writer: Teona Strugar Mitevska, Elma Tataragic; Stars: Zorica Nusheva, Labina Mitevska, Stefan Vujisic, Suad Begovski, Simeon Moni Damevski, Violeta Sapkovska, Petar Mircevski, Andrijana Kolevska, Nikola Kumev, Bajrush Mjaku, Xhevdet Jashari, Vladimir Tuliev, Ilija Volcheski, Igor Todorov, Nenad Angelkovic)

The Golden Glove

Portrait of the infamous serial killer Fritz Honka.

(Country: Germany, France; Year: 2019; Director: Fatih Akin; Writer: Fatih Akin, Heinz Strunk; Stars: Marc Hosemann, Adam Bousdoukos, Jonas Dassler, Tristan Göbel, Margarete Tiesel, Katja Studt, Hark Bohm, Philipp Baltus, Victoria Trauttmansdorff, Uwe Rohde, Dirk Böhling, Lars Nagel, Marc Hosemann, Adam Bousdoukos, Jonas Dassler)

The Ground Beneath My Feet (Der Boden unter den Füssen)

A high-powered business consultant finds her life starting to unravel after her older sister, who has a mental illness, comes back into her life.

(Country: Austria; Year: 2019; Director: Marie Kreutzer; Writer: Marie Kreutzer; Stars: Valerie Pachner, Pia Hierzegger, Mavie Hörbiger, Michelle Barthel, Marc Benjamin, Dominic Marcus Singer, Meo Wulf, Axel Sichrovsky, Bernd Birkhahn, Axel Wandtke, Martina Eitner-Acheampong, Susann Uplegger, Lilly Marie Tschörtner, Florian Reiners, Regina Fritsch)

Hero (Ying Xiong)

Review preview for Hero

Every cinematic trick in the book to make Hero's violence as sexy as a car commercial

Angus Wolfe Murray · 3 out of 5
Visually ravishing fable of maverick warriors in ancient China.

(Country: China/Hong Kong; Year: 2002; Director: Zhang Yimou; Writer: Li Feng, Zhang Yimou, Wang Bin; Stars: Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi, Chen Daoming, Donnie Yen, Man-Yuk, Liu Zhong Yuan, Zheng Tian Yong, Quin Yan)

Full review

Out of competition

I Was At Home, But

After having disappeared for a week, Astrid’s 13-year-old son Phillip returns home without saying a word...

(Country: Germany, Serbia; Year: 2019; Director: Angela Schanelec; Writer: Angela Schanelec; Stars: Franz Rogowski, Alan Williams, Devid Striesow, Lilith Stangenberg, Wolfgang Michael, Maren Eggert, Nicolas Wackerbarth, Dane Komljen, Thorbjörn Björnsson, Ann-Kristin Reyels, Ursula Renneke, Jakob Lassalle, Esther Buss, Marcel Kohler, Jelena Kuljic)

The Kindness Of Strangers

Modern urban fairy tale about a group of people in crisis.

(Country: Denmark, Canada, Sweden, France, Germany; Year: 2019; Director: Lone Scherfig; Writer: Lone Scherfig; Stars: Bill Nighy, Zoe Kazan, Andrea Riseborough, Caleb Landry Jones, Jay Baruchel, Tahar Rahim, David Dencik, Esben Smed, Daniel Kash, Lisa Codrington, Jack Fulton, Samantha Wan, Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll, Patricia McKenzie, Nicolaj Kopernikus)

Opening gala

Marighella

Review preview for Marighella

Credit to the actor-turned-director for thinking big with his first directorial project but in pursuit of the bigger picture, quite a lot of the smaller intricacies are lost.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
Biopic of Marxist Brazilian writer, politician and guerilla fighter Carlos Marighella.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2019; Director: Wagner Moura; Writer: Felipe Braga, Wagner Moura, Erez Milgrom; Stars: Seu Jorge, Bruno Gagliasso, Adriana Esteves, Rafael Lozano, Charles Paraventi, Brian Townes, Humberto Carrão, Luiz Carlos Vasconcelos, Bella Camero, Ana Paula Bouzas, Herson Capri, Guilherme Lopes, Adanilo, Seu Jorge, Bruno Gagliasso)

Full review

Out of competition

Mr Jones

Welsh journalist Gareth Jones experiences at first hand the famine in Ukraine in 1933 – a catastrophe triggered by Stalin’s policies.

(Country: Poland, UK, Ukraine; Year: 2019; Director: Agnieszka Holland; Writer: Andrea Chalupa; Stars: Vanessa Kirby, James Norton, Peter Sarsgaard, Joseph Mawle, Michalina Olszanska, Kenneth Cranham, Celyn Jones, Beata Poźniak, Julian Lewis Jones, Richard Elfyn, Patricia Volny, Krzysztof Pieczynski, Edward Wolstenholme, Billy Holland, Christopher Bloswick)

Öndög

A murder case in the Mongolian steppe. A herder is asked to guard the crime scene - a woman who resolutely scares off both wolves and her neighbor. She has her own plans for the future, which are closely linked to the myths of her homeland.

(Country: Mongolia; Year: 2019; Director: Quan'an Wang; Writer: Quan'an Wang; Stars: Aorigeletu, Dulamjav Enkhtaivan, Norovsambuu, Aorigeletu, Dulamjav Enkhtaivan, Norovsambuu)

The Operative

An espionage thriller about a Mossad agent operating undercover in Tehran.

(Country: US, Israel; Year: 2019; Director: Yuval Adler; Writer: Yuval Adler; Stars: Diane Kruger, Martin Freeman, Cas Anvar, Werner Daehn, Ohad Knoller, Yaakov Zada Daniel, Barnaby Metschurat, Liron Levo, Julia Schneider, Hadi Khanjanpour, Daniel Wandelt, Maria Gnecchi, Erez Ben-Ezra, Diane Kruger, Martin Freeman)

Out of competition

Out Stealing Horses (Ut og stjæle hester)

Review preview for Out Stealing Horses

With Petterson’s novel heavily focused on Trond’s inner life, it’s no easy task to bring it to the screen.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
Trond Sander, 67, recalls the summer of 1948. When this blissful time came to an end, nothing was the same as before.

(Country: Norway, Sweden, Denmark; Year: 2019; Director: Hans Petter Moland; Writer: Hans Petter Moland, Per Petterson; Stars: Stellan Skarsgård, Tobias Santelmann, Danica Curcic, Pål Sverre Hagen, Anders Baasmo Christiansen, Ane Ulimoen Øverli, Bjørn Floberg, Jan Gunnar Røise, Gard B. Eidsvold, Jon Ranes, Jonas Jörgensen, Stellan Skarsgård, Tobias Santelmann, Danica Curcic, Pål Sverre Hagen)

Full review

Piranhas (La Paranza Dei Bambini)

Review preview for Piranhas

The thing that makes Piranhas watchable is the performance of its star, Francesco Di Napoli.

Donald Munro · 2 out of 5
Criminal children seize power in a world without a future.

(Country: Italy; Year: 2019; Director: Claudio Giovannesi; Writer: Roberto Saviano, Claudio Giovannesi, Roberto Saviano, Maurizio Braucci; Stars: Francesco Di Napoli, Viviana Aprea, Ar Tem, Pasquale Marotta, Francesco Di Napoli, Viviana Aprea, Ar Tem, Pasquale Marotta)

Full review

So Long, My Son

Family saga set against the period that followed the Chinese Cultural Revolution.

(Country: China; Year: 2019; Director: Xiaoshuai Wang; Writer: Mei Ah, Xiaoshuai Wang; Stars: Liya Ai, Jiang Du, Zhao-Yan Guo-Zhang, Jingjing Li, Xi Qi, Jingchun Wang, Roy Wang, Cheng Xu, Mei Yong, Liya Ai, Jiang Du, Zhao-Yan Guo-Zhang, Jingjing Li, Xi Qi, Jingchun Wang)

Synonyms

Review preview for Synonyms

The film is held together less by the tale than by tensions.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Tragicomedy about Yoav, a young Israeli determined to wipe out his origins and become French.

(Country: France, Germany, Israel; Year: 2019; Director: Nadav Lapid; Writer: Nadav Lapid; Stars: Tom Mercier, Quentin Dolmaire, Louise Chevillotte, Jonathan Boudina, Gaël Raes, Chris Zastera, John Sehil, Tom Mercier, Quentin Dolmaire, Louise Chevillotte, Jonathan Boudina, Gaël Raes, Chris Zastera, John Sehil)

Full review

System Crasher (Systemsprenger)

Review preview for System Crasher

This isn't an easy watch but it's a compelling one.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Nine-year-old Benni radically defies every rule. But this feared ‘system crasher’s’ only desire is to stop living in a residential home and go back to her mother.

(Country: Germany; Year: 2019; Director: Nora Fingscheidt; Writer: Nora Fingscheidt; Stars: Helena Zengel, Albrecht Schuch, Gabriela Maria Schmeide, Lisa Hagmeister, Melanie Straub, Victoria Trauttmansdorff, Maryam Zaree, Tedros Teclebrhan, Matthias Brenner, Louis von Klipstein, Barbara Philipp, Amelle Schwerk, Sashiko Hara, Fine Belger, Imke Büchel)

Full review

A Tale Of Three Sisters

Three children sent to be foster children/maids in a small town are sent back to their father's house when things go badly.

(Country: Turkey, Germany, Netherlands, Greece; Year: 2019; Director: Emin Alper; Writer: Emin Alper; Stars: Cemre Ebuzziya, Ece Yüksel, Helin Kandemir, Müfit Kayacan, Kayhan Açikgöz, Kubilay Tunçer, Cemre Ebuzziya, Ece Yüksel, Helin Kandemir, Müfit Kayacan, Kayhan Açikgöz, Kubilay Tunçer)

Vice

Review preview for Vice

Compelling viewing.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
The story of Dick Cheney's rise to power and manipulation of US policy, presidents and process.

(Country: US; Year: 2018; Director: Adam McKay; Writer: Adam McKay; Stars: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell, Alison Pill, Eddie Marsan)

Full review

Out of competition