Unheimliches Österreich | Offscreen
"Unheimlich", a German word that's almost impossible to translate. It's been said that it was Freud who created the word, the famous psycho-analyst who was Austrian himself. "Unheimlich" mixes the weird with anxiety. A weird anxiety. And that's exactly the feeling we get from recent Austrian films. A cinema that is very distant from "Sisi" and the romantic nostalgia for the former Habsburg empire. A cinema that may unconciously still be struggling with ghosts from a not so distant past.
For the full programme, please check the website of Cinema Nova.
Angst
A sociopathic young man is released from prison. His delirious voice-over accompanies us on a murderous journey. When he finds an empty, secluded house, he waits for the owners. His suppressed sadistic fantasies reach their zenith in an explosion of rape and violence.
Im Keller (In the Basement)
"In the basement" the Austrian satisfies his deepest desires and lives his obsessions to the fullest degree: dusting off Nazi-paraphernalia, sadomasochistic sex or playing with eerie, life-like dolls. The basement as a symbol for the Austrian subconscious in this cinematographic essay that's both sad and funny.
Einsvierzig + Der Ball (One Forty + The Prom)
"Einsvierzig" is the bizarre and touching portrait of a dwarf, without the hypocritical display of sympathy shown by most documentaries on the disabled. "Der Ball" was made by Seidl as a film student, a documentary on the yearly high school prom and a portrayal of small-town narrow-mindedness.
Hundstage (Dog Days)
It's a scorching hot weekend in the suburbs south of Vienna - a no man's land situated between highways and supermarkets. Six stories, six characters in their daily routine, in loneliness, aggression and desire. A fascinating and astonishing tale, between fiction and documentary.
Ich Seh, Ich Seh (Goodnight Mommy)
The mother of twin brothers Lukas and Elias returns home from the hospital with a fully bandaged head. The twins suspect someone else is hidden under the gauze. Their suspicion is only fed the more by her distant and cold behaviour. Who is this woman that claims to be their mother?
Einsvierzig + Der Ball (One Forty + The Prom)
"Einsvierzig" is the bizarre and touching portrait of a dwarf, without the hypocritical display of sympathy shown by most documentaries on the disabled. "Der Ball" was made by Seidl as a film student, a documentary on the yearly high school prom and a portrayal of small-town narrow-mindedness.
Im Keller (In the Basement)
"In the basement" the Austrian satisfies his deepest desires and lives his obsessions to the fullest degree: dusting off Nazi-paraphernalia, sadomasochistic sex or playing with eerie, life-like dolls. The basement as a symbol for the Austrian subconscious in this cinematographic essay that's both sad and funny.
Angst
A sociopathic young man is released from prison. His delirious voice-over accompanies us on a murderous journey. When he finds an empty, secluded house, he waits for the owners. His suppressed sadistic fantasies reach their zenith in an explosion of rape and violence.
Ich Seh, Ich Seh (Goodnight Mommy)
The mother of twin brothers Lukas and Elias returns home from the hospital with a fully bandaged head. The twins suspect someone else is hidden under the gauze. Their suspicion is only fed the more by her distant and cold behaviour. Who is this woman that claims to be their mother?
- ‹‹
- 2 of 2