The Colony (2015)

A young woman's desperate search for her abducted boyfriend draws her into the infamous Colonia Dignidad, a sect nobody has ever escaped from.

Director:

Florian Gallenberger

Writers:

Torsten Wenzel, Florian Gallenberger

Stars:

Emma Watson, Daniel Brühl, Michael Nyqvist

1 win & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emma Watson	...	Lena
Daniel Brühl	...	Daniel
Michael Nyqvist	...	Paul Schäfer
Richenda Carey	...	Gisela
Vicky Krieps	...	Ursel
Jeanne Werner	...	Doro
Julian Ovenden	...	Roman
August Zirner	...	German Ambassador
Martin Wuttke	...	Niels Biedermann
Nicolás Barsoff	...	Jorge
Steve Karier	...	Bernd
Stefan Merki	...	Rudi
Lucila Gandolfo	...	Colonia Doctor
Johannes Allmayer	...	Dieter
Gilles Soeder	...	Kurt

Storyline

Lena and Daniel, a young couple become entangled in the Chilean military coup of 1973. Daniel is abducted by Pinochet's secret police and Lena tracks him to a sealed off area in the South of the country, called Colonia Dignidad. The Colonia presents itself as a charitable mission run by lay preacher Paul Schäfer but, in fact, is a place nobody ever escaped from. Lena decides to join the cult in order to find Daniel. Based on true events.

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Plot Keywords:

cult | man slaps a woman | escape | greedy institution | religion | 

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Taglines:

Escape is the only option.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violence/torture

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Germany]

Country:

Germany France Luxembourg UK USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

15 April 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

Colonia

Filming Locations:

Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Box Office

Budget:

$14,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Majestic Filmproduktion, Iris Productions, Rat Pack Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The stadium where Daniel is abducted is supposed to be Estadio Nacional de Chile, but in the movie, it is the stadium Tomás Adolfo Ducó, which is the home of C.A. Huracán, a soccer team from Buenos Aires, Argentina.

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Goofs

After the meeting with the German ambassador Lena calls the Ritz hotel to contact the pilot of the Lufthansa crew she was member. But on the seventies there was no Ritz hotel in Santiago. The first one was opened in Las Condes neighborhood, far away from downtown in 2002.

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Quotes

Paul Schäfer: Anyone can torture, but to break a person without harming physically, that's an art.

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Soundtracks

TIROLER HOLZHACKERBUAB'N
Performed by Déi Rammericher Tuutebattien
Composed by Josef Franz Wagner

User Reviews

Not a mere thriller, but a movie with contents

I've been to the premiere at the Film Festival in Zurich and I was moved by the movie, not because of the love story, but because of the irrefutable truth. The movie left me thinking and researching about its topic: Colognia Dignidad, a cult in Santiago de Chile. It conjures many ethical questions and portrays what humanity is capable of. The movie grips and doesn't let go of you till the end. The contents is real, except for the love story that forms the golden thread. One has to imagine that the movie portrays the life and the ways of Colognia Dignidad almost like a documentary without felt exaggeration, but it is still a movie with a story. Superb acting by Emma Watson and Daniel Brühl made the movie an even more intense experience. The only criticism I can make is that the love story is average in comparison to the rest. I believe that the characters actions don't always make much sense. All in all, it's one of the best movies I've seen this year and cannot be compared with the commercial films normally shown in cinemas.