71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance (1994)

71 scenes revolving around a recent immigrant, a couple that has just adopted a daughter, a college student and a lonely old man.

Director:

Michael Haneke

Writer:

Michael Haneke

Stars:

Gabriel Cosmin Urdes, Lukas Miko, Otto Grünmandl

4 wins.

Cast

Credited cast:
Gabriel Cosmin Urdes	...	Marian Radu (Romanian Boy)
Lukas Miko	...	Max
Otto Grünmandl	...	Tomek
Anne Bennent	...	Inge Brunner
Udo Samel	...	Paul Brunner
Branko Samarovski	...	Hans
Claudia Martini	...	Maria
Georg Friedrich	...	Bernie
Alexander Pschill	...	Hanno
Klaus Händl	...	Gerhard
Corina Eder	...	Anni
Dorothee Hartinger	...	Kristina
Patricia Hirschbichler	...	Sabine Tomek
Barbara Nothegger	...	Fürsorgerin
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sebastian Stan	...	Kid

Storyline

71 scenes revolving around a recent immigrant, a couple that has just adopted a daughter, a college student and a lonely old man.

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Plot Keywords:

news report | newscast | news footage | puzzle | pascal's wager | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

On a 2017 interview Sebastian Stan commented about his experience working on the film: "My mom was taking me into auditions, and I ended up booking a small role in this Michael Haneke movie. And I had a horrible time. And it just...I hated it. I mean I was...it petrified me. And so I actually remember telling her I just didn't want to do anything. She just always saw me as very impressionistic as a kid and thought that this could be something I'd be into, and so was sort of stirring me that way, but I didn't... after that experience, I didn't want to have anything to do with it. And then it really began in high school, when I got to the US. Years later, freshman year, sophomore year in high school, I started doing plays."

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Connections

Referenced in Blind (1997)

User Reviews

71 Fragmente einer Chronologie des Zufalls: Impactful, Subtle, and the Perfect Finale

After watching Der Siebente Kontinent and Benny's Video in rather rapid succession, it took me an inexplicably long time to get around to this, the third in Michael Haneke's Glaciation Trilogy, the director's exploration of isolation and alienation in modern society.

Following the unrelated stories of an array of everyday Austrians, 71 Fragmente einer Chronologie des Zufalls explores the weeks immediately before a bank shooting that leaves four, including the gunman, dead.

A written introduction tells us the eventual outcome of the film's events, leading us immediately to conclude that the climactic crescendo to which we will build is not so much the film's subject as a means by which to explain it. What follows is a ninety minute procession of apparently unrelated stories unfolding before us, detailing the lives of everyday people. From a lonely old man to a couple fostering an aloof child, a border hopping street urchin to an austere and religious security guard and his wife, the film covers many lives and relationships. The transitions between these are marked by a black screen, with occasional footage of news stories interjected throughout. These show us the chaos and anarchy of the characters' world, bitesize glimpses into everyday horrors. Perhaps the only discernible thing connecting them is the mire of insanity which occupies their television screens, something best remembered for later. Each miniature story is compelling and interesting, a fine achievement given the limited screen time each gets with such an array of characters to be explored. Some, of course, engender more interest than others, the old man and student characters two which I found myself particularly drawn to. Haneke, unsurprisingly, constructs long and unconventional shots, beautiful in their individuality. An early morning ritual scene recalls Der Siebente Kontinent, the camera's focus on actions rather than faces an important technique in establishing the life of this particular family. A long and winding scene featuring the elderly man on the phone to his daughter is, though entirely banal and mundane, one of the film's strongest moments, its ability to so simply yet comprehensively detail a character quite wonderful. Though one might argue that the film appears to go in no clear direction for most of its running time, this is a clear part of its slowly unfolding eventual plan. It is only in the last ten minutes of the film that we see anything more than a fly-on-the-wall documentary of regular lives and are introduced to the film's true message: one that is impactful, subtle, and the perfect finale for a trilogy that delightfully explores its chosen theme.

Creating portraits of a wide number of characters, each more intimate than many films' main characters, 71 Fragmente einer Chronologie des Zufalls is a very fine final act in a very fine trilogy. Just as subtle, removed, and non-judgmental as its predecessors, this is a comprehensive and thought-provoking social commentary which will doubtlessly benefit from multiple viewings, perhaps even more so than its cinematic siblings.

Details

Country:

Austria Germany

Language:

German Romanian English

Release Date:

26 October 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

71 Fragmentos de uma Cronologia do Acaso

Filming Locations:

Austria

Company Credits

Production Co:

ARTE, Wega Film, Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1