Spoilers Alert:
Director Christian Petzold releases his next collaboration with Paula Beer and Franz Rogowski: The Berlin Fairy Tale UNDINE updates an ancient myth. In our review we reveal exactly what it is about and how it works.
And Christoph (Franz Rogowski) falls for her.
It is empathetic and shocking how much this insecure, completely in love man fears that he does not deserve Undine’s favor. But from Undine’s position it is just as shocking and hurtful how little he manages to see Undine as herself, but rather to judge or even condemn her based on early stages in her life. Paula Beer, meanwhile, plays the title heroine, who is initially devastated, as a worried woman who, even in the most magical and heartfelt moments, allows the immense burden of unexpected, long-cherished experiences to shine through behind her delicate façade that savors the moment. Her Undine is an old, hard-to-trust soul in a young body, convinced by an ancient curse but wanting a modern attitude. This undine doesn’t want to be objectified, doesn’t want to take a passive position, but rather be an active, complex person – and Petzold creates powerful-looking but grounded symbolic drama from the question: Will it succeed or will it continue to fail in 2020 ?
“Once you have found your way to the level of subtle magical realism on which Petzold’s film operates, Undine and Christoph’s romance develops into a tender but ominous relationship.”
Conclusion: With his outstandingly staged romantic drama “Undine,” “Transit” director Christian Petzold creates a contemporary, bittersweet urban fairy tale with profound performances.
Undine can be seen in USA cinemas from July 2nd, 2020.
