Hello ladies and gentlemen, your pal Muldoon here with a look at one of the more brutal films of the festival, an anthology film that beautifully explores dark and twisted scenarios with three of Germany’s most intense directors. This film is absolutely not for the faint of heart. The three different scenarios feel like high class Troma films of the eighties, though done with incredible attention to detail and top tier design/acting. This film was not on my radar at all, and with a title like “German Angst,” it’s safe to assume there’s going to be some level of aggression (note the “angst” in the title), but exactly how much – I certainly wasn’t prepared for.
The first chunk of the film, FINAL GIRL, comes from Director Jorg Buttgereit (NECROMANTIK). His piece is a moody poem of a short. It’s the story of a young girl waking up and cuddling with her guinea pig, while handling one bit of unfinished business in the other room. Buttgereit establishes a space, then punches in for the most extreme of close ups. I’m talking pores, wrinkles, hairs on an arm standing to attention. These were all incredibly deliberate decisions and fit perfectly into this slightly claustrophobic short. Here’s a film where every single shot felt planned and executed to perfection. There’s a graphic depiction of torture with a heightened sound design, like the “plucked strings” sounds in Danny Boyle’s 127 HOURS that’ll have your stomach turning even if you look away from the screen. That mixed with a bedtime story wind up of a score creates this unnerving storybook vibe that’s both playful and menacing at the same time. Buttgereit’s style of filmmaking at play in FINAL GIRL is on a whole plane of its own, I can’t scream that enough. I actually feel I learned a thing or two after watching this. It’s disturbing, poignant, and masterfully crafted. It even gave the audience a few visual paper cuts that seemed to create a morbid arena wave from front to back of folks adjusting in their seats. This was my favorite of the three by far.
Next up is MAKE A WISH from Director Michal Kosakowski (ZERO KILLED) with the most brutal imagery of the three films. I can’t stress “brutal” enough as this contains numerous images that will stick with you (for better or worse) far after you’ve left the theater. It’s equal parts MISERY, “bite the curb” scene in AMERICAN HISTORY X, and famous tunnel scene from A CLOCKWORK ORANGE. It’s a genuine depiction of human cruelty and the sadistic pleasure those individuals get from their heinous acts. It’s not the type of film I’d personally seek out as the visuals were just too graphic for my tastes (and I loved HOSTEL, so that should tell you something). Now that’s not a dig at all, as I feel that level of disgust is exactly what Kosakowski was going for – to make you ill and yet in some sick way enjoy the brutality once it’s directed at the bad guys and not someone you’ve come to like. It’s a disturbing fairytale of two deaf and mute lovebirds who go exploring in an abandoned town that happen to cross paths with some truly disgusting thugs (full of angst!).The main character of the piece, the male lover, tells his girlfriend a rather incredible story of horror that ended with a magical twist, in relation to a trinket he gives while they’re having a great time exploring. His story is a flashback with a textualized voice over, like the time before talkies. His recounting of this story is a punch to the gut and a yanking on your heartstrings that ends with a twist of fate that feels fulfilling. It’s not just emotional torture porn with gross moment after gross moment, though I did find it hard to watch. This entire short is less of a visual paper cut and more of a full on assault with a purpose. With elements of Vic Morrow’s TIME OUT from the TWILIGHT ZONE and an intentionally uncomfortable POV of a monolog, Kosakowski holds a mirror up to his audience – again perfectly in line with the concept of the overall film, to not just showcase violence, but have something interesting to say about it.
To wrap the film up is Andreas Marschali (MASKS) with more of an unnerving film than the one preceding it. We are introduced into this crazy sexual adventure by a lover recounting his escapade to his girlfriend; so his gruff Mickey Rourke-like voiceover for us (the audience) is actually him describing his tale to his lady. While that’s not an uncommon device, the idea of a lover going in depth into his wild sexual fantasies coming to life after he had an argument with her – to her – is just weird. That’s just the tip of the iceberg (and a personal oddity to me that might not be to anyone else), as the story begins when after an argument with his lady, he chooses to meet up with a gal from the internet at a hip club full of fancy lights and lots of blow. His night quickly snowballs into a case of a horn dog biting off more than he can chew when he decides to follow the wrong lady to a bizarre EYES WIDE SHUT style sex party requiring membership, an eccentric orgy of perversion with very simple rules, like “Don’t take off your blindfold.” Well… you can guess what he does that sets off the rest of the night (not really a spoiler given it sets off the rest of the short). Overall, this one more than the other two felt like it’d be right at home in TALES OF THE DARKSIDE: THE MOVIE. This piece was significantly easier on the eyes than Kosakowski’s MAKE A WISH, but just might ruin your evening if you’re hoping to get lucky.
I’m glad I saw this film, though have zero interest in seeing it again. It’s tricky to describe as it tastefully handles some rather distasteful ideas and scenarios. It’s abhorrently shocking multiple times, but each film had something poignant to say, something to back up that level of violence. I know how tacky it sounds, but this really is an incredibly poetic film that will stick with you long after you’re done watching it… Just because you might be done with it, doesn’t mean it won’t be done popping into your head when you least expect it. Much like the mysterious club in the third short, this film will show you things you can’t un-see, but before you get the opportunity you have to ask yourself “am I in or not?” Is this a film that appeals to you or not? While I know my tastes, I can’t tell you if this film was good or bad. If what I’ve written above seems like something you’d want to check out, then you will not be disappointed. If however, you’re a little timid or just don’t enjoy watching violence – this film is most definitely not for you.
- Mike McCutchen
"Muldoon"
Mike@aintitcool.com
