Longing (2006)
"Sehnsucht" (original title)

Director:

Valeska Grisebach

Writer:

Valeska Grisebach

Stars:

Andreas Müller, Ilka Welz, Anett Dornbusch

4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Andreas Müller	...	Markus Koplin
Ilka Welz	...	Ella Koplin
Anett Dornbusch	...	Rose Kuchenbecker
Erika Lemke	...	Oma
Markus Werner	...	Nachbarjunge
Doritha Richter	...	Mutter
Detlef Baumann	...	Nachbar
Ilse Lausch	...	Tante
Harald Kuchenbecker	...	Onkel
Jan Günzel	...	Freund #1
Bernd Liske	...	Freund #2
Bernd Wachsmuth	...	Freund #3
Hartmut Schliephacke	...	Bürgermeister / Wehrleiter
Viola Hoffmann	...	Frau in Frauenrunde #1
Petra Lemke	...	Frau in Frauenrunde #2

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

husband wife relationship | suicide | dancer | car accident | infidelity | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Details

Official Sites:

Piffl Medien [de]

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

7 September 2006 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Longing

Filming Locations:

Gnewikow, Neuruppin, Brandenburg, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

3Sat, Home Run Pictures, Medienfonds GFP

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

Excellent Mood Piece

The ability of the movie of keeping its audience interested right up to the end by constructing the movie almost entirely out of slow, long, lingering shots reflects the brilliance of the director. Very few directors have this ability. Wong Kar Wai is one that comes to mind. Gus van Sant on the other hand has been fairly erratic: Elephant was good but Last Days lulled me to sleep. So it is refreshing to see a director having the grasp and control of production.

Coming back to the film, it is a simple story of a married couple where the man has a brief fling with a woman in a different town, which is resolved eventually. It may also get fairly predictable, although it wasn't for me.

It is clear that the director is having fun with the audience by using intelligent shock tactics. However, ironic as it may sound, this is a perfect film for people who wish to wish to watch a movie to relax and enjoy good cinema. A few of the people may not like the epilogue, but to me it was revealing and it was an interesting variation to regular cinema. So it doesn't really matter whether we like it or not, it is a unique experience that I haven't seen in movies before.

The acting is also excellent with all the performers giving a heartfelt and honest performance.

So kudos to the director and we hope she comes up with more such stuff in the future.