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Berlin International Film Festival · 2020

Berlin International Film Festival 2020

Competition

Programme

18 films · 7 reviews

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All The Dead Ones (Todos os mortos)

1899. Slavery recently has been abolished in Brazil. The fates of the women in two families become entangled when the Soareses, former land and slave owners, request help from Ina, a woman of African descent they once dismissed due to religious differences.

(Country: Brazil, France; Year: 2020; Director: Marco Dutra, Caetano Gotardo; Writer: Marco Dutra, Caetano Gotardo; Stars: Mawusi Tulani, Clarissa Kiste, Carolina Bianchi, Thaia Perez, Agyei Augusto, Leonor Silveira, Alaíde Costa, Rogério Brito, Thomas Aquino, Andréa Marquee, Luciano Chirolli, Teca Pereira, Gilda Nomacce, Vinicius Meloni, Eduardo Silva)

World premiere

Bad Tales (Favolacce)

Review preview for Bad Tales

The D'Innocenzos let the mood do the heavy lifting, stewing us along with the families.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Trouble brews over a long hot summer on the outskirts of Rome.

(Country: Italy, Switzerland; Year: 2020; Director: Damiano D'Innocenzo, Fabio D'Innocenzo; Writer: Damiano D'Innocenzo, Fabio D'Innocenzo; Stars: Elio Germano, Barbara Chichiarelli, Gabriel Montesi, Max Malatesta, Ileana D'Ambra, Lino Musella, Massimiliano Tortora, Barbara Ronchi, Sara Bertelà, Justin Korovkin, Cristina Pellegrino, Giulia Melillo, Giulietta Rebeggiani, Federico Majorana, Giulia Galiani)

Full review

World premiere

Berlin Alexanderplatz

Modern adaptation of Weimar Republic era novel set in the present day.

(Country: Germany, Netherlands; Year: 2020; Director: Burhan Qurbani; Writer: Martin Behnke, Burhan Qurbani, based on the novel by Alfred Döblin; Stars: Albrecht Schuch, Jella Haase, Martin Wuttke, Nils Verkooijen, Welket Bungué, Joachim Król, Lukhanyo Bele, Benny O.-Arthur, Annabelle Mandeng, Mira Elisa Goeres, Lena Schmidtke, Thomas Lawinky, Derek Meisenburg, Faris Saleh, Richard Fouofié Djimeli)

World premiere

DAU. Natasha

Natasha works in the canteen of a secret Soviet research institute. She drinks a lot, likes to talk about love and embarks on an affair. State security intervenes. A tale of violence that is as radical as it is provocative.

(Country: Russia, UK, Germany, Ukraine; Year: 2020; Director: Ilya Khrzhanovskiy, Jekaterina Oertel; Writer: Ilya Khrzhanovskiy, Kora Landau-Drobantseva; Stars: Natalia Berezhnaya, Olga Shkabarnya, Vladimir Azhippo, Alexei Blinov, Luc Bigé, Anatoliy Sidko, Raisa Voloshchuk, Natalia Berezhnaya, Olga Shkabarnya, Vladimir Azhippo, Alexei Blinov, Luc Bigé, Anatoliy Sidko, Raisa Voloshchuk)

World premiere

Days (Rizi)

Kang lives alone in a big house, Non in a small apartment in town. They meet, and then part, their days flowing on as before.

(Country: Taiwan; Year: 2020; Director: Tsai Ming-liang; Stars: Lee Kang-sheng, Anong Houngheuangsy)

World premiere

Delete History (Effacer l'historique)

Three social media victims declare war on the tech giants.

(Year: 2020; Director: Benoît Delépine, Gustave Kervern; Writer: Benoît Delépine, Gustave Kervern)

World premiere

First Cow

Review preview for First Cow

The simplest of pleasures bring the greatest moments of joy in Reichardt’s latest film.

Matthew Anderson · 4.5 out of 5
A cook with a group of fur trappers strikes up a connection with a Chinese emigre in the Old West.

(Country: US; Year: 2019; Director: Kelly Reichardt; Writer: Jonathan Raymond, Kelly Reichardt, based on the book by Jonathan Raymond; Stars: John Magaro, Orion Lee, Toby Jones, Alia Shawkat)

Full review

International premiere

Hidden Away (Volevo Nascondermi)

The story of Antonio Ligabue, a revolutionary loner in modern art.

(Country: Italy; Year: 2020; Director: Giorgio Diritti; Writer: Giorgio Diritti, Fredo Valla, Giorgio Diritti, Tania Pedroni, Fredo Valla; Stars: Elio Germano, Oliver Ewy, Leonardo Carrozzo, Gianni Fantoni, Andrea Gherpelli, Orietta Notari, Denis Campitelli, Guglielmo Pagnozzi, Peter Hottinger, Dagny Gioulami, Kamil Krejcí, Benjamin Utzerath, Carmen Gratl, Laura Pizzirani, Lorenzo Ansaloni)

World premiere

The Intruder

After a traumatic episode, a woman starts to find it hard to distinguish between what is real and what is imaginary.

(Country: Argentina, Mexico; Year: 2020; Director: Natalia Meta; Writer: Natalia Meta; Stars: Cecilia Roth, Erica Rivas, Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Daniel Hendler, Mirta Busnelli, Agustín Rittano, Guillermo Arengo, Cecilia Roth, Erica Rivas, Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Daniel Hendler, Mirta Busnelli, Agustín Rittano, Guillermo Arengo)

World premiere

Irradiated (Irradiés)

Documentary about people who have survived the irradiation of war.

(Year: 2020; Director: Rithy Panh)

World premiere

My Little Sister (Schwesterlein)

Review preview for My Little Sister

Chuat and Reymond’s début feature is grounded in a deep reality.

Anne-Katrin Titze · 4 out of 5
Lisa has bid goodbye to her ambitions as a playwright and the Berlin arts scene and now lives in Switzerland with her husband, who runs an international school. When her twin brother – star of the Schaubühne theatre’s ensemble – falls ill, she returns to Berlin.

(Country: Switzerland, Germany; Year: 2020; Director: Stéphanie Chuat, Véronique Reymond; Writer: Stéphanie Chuat, Véronique Reymond; Stars: Nina Hoss, Lars Eidinger, Marthe Keller, Jens Albinus, Thomas Ostermeier, Isabelle Caillat, Paulo dos Santos)

Full review

World premiere

Never Rarely Sometimes Always

Review preview for Never Rarely Sometimes Always

It is a portrait of loneliness and alienation, yes, but also of resourcefulness, resilience and unity.

Jeremy Mathews · 4.5 out of 5
Faced with an unintended pregnancy and a lack of local support, Autumn and her cousin Skylar embark on a brave, fraught journey across state lines to New York City.

(Country: US; Year: 2020; Director: Eliza Hittman; Writer: Eliza Hittman; Stars: Sidney Flanigan, Talia Ryder, Théodore Pellerin, Ryan Eggold, Sharon Van Etten, Drew Seltzer)

Full review See: Interview with Eliza Hittman and Sidney Flanigan about Never Rarely Sometimes Always

International premiere

The Roads Not Taken

A day in the life of a dad and daughter as she grapples with the challenges of her father's chaotic mind, while looking to the future.

(Country: UK, US, Sweden; Year: 2020; Director: Sally Potter; Writer: Sally Potter; Stars: Javier Bardem, Elle Fanning, Salma Hayek, Branka Katic, Laura Linney, Dimitri Andreas, Katia Mullova-Brind, Milena Tscharntke, Debora Weston, Aaron Joshua, Sabina Cameron, Griffin Stevens, Catherine Levi, Ruth Keeling, Olan Montgomery)

World premiere

The Salt Of Tears (Le sel des larmes)

Story about a relationship that sparks between a provincial youngster on a trip to Paris and a woman he meets there.

(Country: France, Switzerland; Year: 2020; Director: Philippe Garrel; Writer: Jean-Claude Carrière, Philippe Garrel, Arlette Langmann; Stars: Logann Antuofermo, Oulaya Amamra, Louise Chevillotte, André Wilms, Souheila Yacoub, Aline Belibi, Teddy Chawa, Martin Mesnier, Logann Antuofermo, Oulaya Amamra, Louise Chevillotte, André Wilms, Souheila Yacoub, Aline Belibi, Teddy Chawa)

World premiere

Siberia

Review preview for Siberia

A film that is entirely built on moments and glimpses.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
A broken man flees the world and finds himself in a cave. His escape becomes a radical confrontation with his dreams, his memories and demonic visions.

(Country: Italy, Germany, Mexico; Year: 2020; Director: Abel Ferrara; Writer: Abel Ferrara, Christ Zois; Stars: Willem Dafoe, Dounia Sichov, Simon McBurney, Cristina Chiriac, Daniel Giménez Cacho, Fabio Pagano, Anna Ferrara, Phil Neilson, Laurent Arnatsiaq, Valentina Rozumenko, Trish Osmond, Stella Pecollo, Willem Dafoe, Dounia Sichov, Simon McBurney)

Full review See: Abel Ferrara in conversation on Siberia, Willem Dafoe and his latest projects , Abel Ferrara in conversation on Abel Ferrara’s Cinema Village, Willem Dafoe, Siberia and more

World premiere

There Is No Evil (Sheytan vojud nadarad)

Review preview for There Is No Evil

Rasoulof schools us in the ins and outs of a judicial system in which not only those who are directly sentenced to death can find themselves condemned as a result.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Four stories that are variations on the crucial themes of moral strength and the death penalty.

(Year: 2020; Director: Mohammad Rasoulof; Writer: Mohammad Rasoulof; Stars: Baran Rasoulof, Ehsan Mirhosseini, Zhila Shahi, Mohammad Seddighimehr, Mohammad Valizadegan, Kaveh Ahangar, Mahtab Servati, Parvin Maleki, Reza Bahrami, Darya Moghbeli, Shaghayegh Shoorian, Salar Khamseh, Kaveh Ebrahim, Pouya Mehri, Gholamhosein Taseiri)

Full review

World premiere

Undine

Review preview for Undine

When Petzold shows the broken mending again, the magic of cinema becomes the subject

Anne-Katrin Titze · 4.5 out of 5
Undine is a city historian on urban development in a Berlin museum, the 'place by the swamp'. When her boyfriend leaves her, she vows to kill the faithless man but soon meets another.

(Country: Germany, France; Year: 2020; Director: Christian Petzold; Writer: Christian Petzold; Stars: Paula Beer, Franz Rogowski, Maryam Zaree, Jacob Matschenz, Anne Ratte-Polle, Rafael Stachowiak, José Barros, Julia Franz Richter, Gloria Endres de Oliveira, Enno Trebs, Christoph Zrenner, Stefan Walz, Bita Steinjan)

Full review See: Christian Petzold and Heinz Emigholz on German fairy tales

World premiere

The Woman Who Ran

While her husband is on a business trip, a woman meets three friends on the outskirts of Seoul. Their friendly conversation carries many undercurrents.

(Country: South Korea; Year: 2020; Director: Hong Sang-soo; Stars: Kim Min-hee, Lee Eun-mi, Song Seon-mi, Seo Young-hwa)

World premiere