Vincent Wants to Sea

German film Vincent Wants To Sea explores what it means to be normal and how friends might or might not be able to help you realise what you really want in life. Ralf Huettner's film follows Vincent (Florian David Fitz), a young man with Tourette's. After his mother dies of liver cirrhosis, his politician father sends him to a treatment facility to get his Tourette's under control.

At the clinic, Vincent meets anorexic Marie and shares a room with obsessive-compulsive Alex. Vincent and Marie bond and after an altercation at the clinic decide to steal their therapist's car. Since Alex catches them in the act, they swiftly kidnap him and take him along on a trip to Italy to fulfil Vincent's mother's last wish.

Vincent's father and Dr Rose, the therapist, are hot on their heels as they make their way through the breathtaking alpine scenery. Along the way, all three young patients have to confront their illnesses and make compromises to continue with each other. One of the most poignant scenes is when Alex hits breaking point and hurls some home truths at Vincent and Marie, causing a meltdown in which every one of them has to confront and ultimately accept what they really are.

The film portrays the characters' various illnesses with subtlety and dignity, without using them for cheap laughs. Fitz's portrayal as someone tortured by his Tourette's and haunted by all he has lost because of it is touching and believable. Karoline Herfurth's Marie intrigues the audience as much as she does Vincent and her ultimately tragic character arc adds a realism to the character that is rarely found in essentially light-hearted films like this. Johannes Allmayer as Alex slightly steals the show, managing to portray a character that should be profoundly annoying as someone the audience cannot help but sympathise with. Heino Ferch and Katharina Müller-Elmau as Vincent's father and therapist round out the splendid cast with their contrasting road trip down to Italy.

The scenic shots of the Alps are absolutely beautiful and provide a good backdrop for Vincent's soul searching. At times the story felt a little too thin to be spread out over the length of the film, but the quality of the acting kept this mostly at bay. The somewhat unexpected ending leaves the audience with the melancholy knowledge that there is never a happy ending for everybody, but that this should not hold you back from searching for happiness.