Vier Minuten (2006)

An elderly piano teacher trains a young convict at a women's penitentiary.

Director:

Chris Kraus

Writer:

Chris Kraus

Stars:

Hannah Herzsprung, Monica Bleibtreu, Vadim Glowna

22 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Monica Bleibtreu	...	Gertrud 'Traude' Krüger
Hannah Herzsprung	...	Jenny von Loeben
Sven Pippig	...	Mütze
Richy Müller	...	Kowalski
Jasmin Tabatabai	...	Ayse
Stefan Kurt	...	Direktor Meyerbeer
Vadim Glowna	...	Gerhard von Loeben
Nadja Uhl	...	Nadine Hoffmann
Peter Davor	...	Journalist Wahrig
Edita Malovcic	...	Traude - jung
Christian Koerner	...	SS-Sturmbannführer
Kathrin Kestler	...	Hannah
Amber Bongard	...	Clara Mütze
Dietrich Hollinderbäumer	...	Pater Vincens
Dieter Moor	...	TV-Moderator

Storyline

In Germany, the elder Frau Traude Krueger gives piano classes in a prison for a few prisoners and the security guard Mütze. When she sees the rebel and aggressive Jenny Von Loeben playing piano, she immediately identifies her potential and offers to teach her for a competition. Frau Krueger finds that Jenny was a prodigy when she was a child; abused when she was a teenager and has been imprisoned for murdering and decapitating a man. Along the period they work together preparing for the exhibition, Frau Krueger discloses secrets about her love in World War II while the self-destructive Jenny has four minutes of glory and recognition of her talent.

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Plot Keywords:

piano | convict | prisoner | prison | women's prison | 

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Taglines:

The next German film sensation after The Lives of Others

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Genres:

Drama | Music

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Europa Corp. [France] Official site [Germany]

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

18 April 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cuatro minutos

Filming Locations:

Luckau, Brandenburg, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

€1,400,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kordes & Kordes Film GmbH, Südwestrundfunk (SWR), Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min 112 min

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When student Jenny is at Frau Krüger's (b. 1926) home, a picture of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) and one of Wilhelm Furtwängler (1886-1954) can be seen on the wall above the piano. Earlier, we see a picture of Furtwängler when the young Krüger is being coerced by a member of the Nazi party to rebuke her friendship with her then student (circa 1944).

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Goofs

In several sequences where we see Jenny playing the piano, the notes we hear do not correspond to the keys she plays.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Gertrud 'Traude' Krüger: I'm very sorry.
Direktor Meyerbeer: About what?
Gertrud 'Traude' Krüger: Them dying.
Direktor Meyerbeer: I'm sorry about how they died.

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Connections

References The Blues Brothers (1980)

User Reviews

Exciting and thought-provoking film!

I am still feeling quite spellbound, after seeing the film "Vier Minuten" this evening! The director's

opening sequence, with skillful use of silence and a relatively slow pace, immediately caught my attention. The photography was excellent and the acting superb. The story, although slightly contrived, was engaging. I feel that the subplot was not really connected to the main story and could have been developed further. The music was most enjoyable, but I feel that, although music features to a large extent in the film, it is not meant to be a showcase for the music, but rather as a tool to explore the relationship between Frau Krueger and Jenny. This is exceptionally well depicted and the acting absolutely brilliant!

I feel that there is a great depth to this film, which probably needs more analysis than I have had time to give it. I should like to see the film again and wish I could see a version without sub-titles. It is so tempting to peek, thereby missing all the nuances of the wonderful characterizations.

I would recommend this film to anyone interested in intelligent acting and who wants to be able to reflect on a film's deeper meaning, rather than just be superficially entertained. I enjoyed "Vier Minuten" and although it was set in a rather grim environment, I found it uplifting, rather than depressing!