Franz West (1909-85) remembers his youth in Vienna: the variety of the Jewish population of the so called Matzah-Island, his commitment to the worker’s movement of the Red Vienna and the rise of Austro-fascism and National Socialism. West’s masterly narration combined with impressing archive footage illustrate and elucidate the complex Austrian history between WW1 and WW2.
Tag: AUSTRIA
Bernhard’s last play Heldenplatz, viewed as an attack on Austria, caused a media sensation in Vienna in 1989 and brought widespread reactions of outrage that ranged from the man in the street to the highest government officials. Such criticism totally misconstrued the nature and purpose of the play, which in form, style, and content fits directly into the normal sequence of his plays. Using his standard technique of exaggeration and employing his outstanding linguistic talent, Bernhard contributes to the theme of Vergangenheitsbewältigung on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the Anschluβ. A sickly character, Robert Schuster, representing a fatally ill Bern-hard, makes a last effort to confront the deficiencies of the land Bernhard loved, not hated, as is commonly assumed.
Eva has just gotten married to an older gentleman, but discovers that he is obsessed with order in his life and doesn’t have much room for passion. She becomes despondent and leaves him, returning to her father’s house. One day while bathing in the lake she meets a young man and they fall in love. The husband has become grief stricken at the loss of his young bride, and fate brings him together with the young lover that has taken Eva from him.
After a frank confession by his wife, a doctor is called to see a dying patient. The cause of the night brings him to meet an old friend, a pianist, who tells him of a mysterious ball where he is due to perform. Based on the book “Traumnovelle” (“Rhapsody: A Dream Novel”) by Arthur Schnitzler.
Described as an answer to Fassbinder’s The Marriage of Maria Braun, Fraulein tells the story of a German woman and a former French prisoner of war living in 1950s Germany. Instead of playing a role in rebuilding her country, Haneke’s heroine remains preoccupied with her personal affairs. Shot predominantly in black and white (with a color sequence added toward the end), Fraulein asserts Haneke’s place alongside the masters of the New German Cinema.
Ten years after the end of World War I, Austrian soldier Franz leaves Russia and returns to his village, where he is reunited with Frieda, a woman who believes he is her long-lost son.
Seven Women, Seven Sins represents a quintessential moment in film history. The women filmmakers invited to direct for the seven sins were amongst the world’s most renown: Helke Sander (Gluttony), Bette Gordon (Greed), Maxi Cohen (Anger), Chantal Akerman (Sloth), Valie Export (Lust), Laurence Gavron (Envy), and Ulrike Ottinger (Pride). Each filmmaker had the liberty of choosing a sin to interpret as they wished. The final film reflected this diversity, including traditional narrative fiction, experimental video, a musical, a radical documentary, and was delivered in multiple formats from 16, super 16, video and 35mm.
Edward Stephenson, the son of a great industrialist, is due to marry the daughter of another prominent business leader. But the boy prefers a modest employee of the latter, Maud Hartley, whose brother is an impossible rascal, murderer of a police officer. Maud is spurned by Edward who wrongly assumes she is unfaithful. Later, the girl is victim of a railway accident and then throws herself headlong into the easy life. Will the couple reunite again, for better or worse?