American chaos
Towards the end of the Berlinale, it became clear what criteria had to be met for a film to be invited to the Competition. Either it had to be directed by a female director or the protagonist had to be female. In the case of the American entry ‘If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You’, both criteria were met. The director Mary Bronstein had attracted a lot of attention with her debut ‘Yeast’ in 2008. In her new film, Rose Byrne plays the therapist Linda, a woman in her mid-40s whose daughter suffers from a mysterious illness. The daughter is only vaguely recognisable and it is never quite clear what her illness is all about. As the story progresses, Linda increasingly loses her orientation, all sorts of things go wrong and she becomes entangled in a web of frustration and helpless anger. Quite understandable, especially as her flat is first flooded and then the ceiling collapses, leaving a permanent gaping hole. No wonder Linda is on the verge of a nervous breakdown, however without the wild humour of Pedro Almodóvar's film 30 years ago.
The Australian actress Rose Byrne, who has been voted ‘sexiest woman alive’ was intentionally made unattractive for the role, is a strong contender for the acting award. Hilariously deadpan and neatly groomed, the Late Night entertainer Conan O'Brian plays her therapist. with whom she comes into growing conflict.
To make matters worse, Linda's absent husband also calls and tells her what to do. This is staged as exuberant chaos and is intended to drive the stress of the single working mum to the extreme. At some point, even the viewer becomes increasingly annoyed and wonders what Mary Bronstein, as director and author, is trying to tell us.
Austrian familiy horror
Things are more exciting in ‘Mother's Baby’ by the Austrian director Johanna Moder. Marie Leuenberger plays a successful conductor in her early 40s whose wish to have a child finally comes true.
But Julia's longed-for happiness doesn't materialise. While her husband Georg (Hans Löw) is happy with everything, she can't make friends with the child. In addition, there are strange examinations at the private clinic where she gave birth. The caring gynaecologist Dr Vielfort (the name sounds a bit like Voldemort), played by the Danish actor Claes Bang soon makes her suspicious. Julia's child was taken away from her after birth to compensate for an alleged lack of oxygen at the Vienna General Hospital, but strangely enough there are no records of this. Julia becomes increasingly distrustful; the child, who never cries and lies quietly in his bed like a baby dummy, seems more and more uncanny to her. She is convinced that someone else's child was passed on to her after the birth.
Her distrust is dismissed as postnatal depression and she argues more and more with her husband. The audience no longer knows whether Julia's suspicions are correct or whether she is slipping into paranoia.
Johanna Moder skilfully combines elements of a thriller with the drama of a couple overwhelmed by the birth of their first child. As Julia, Marie Leuenberger delivers the subtle performance of a mother who feels let down by her husband and her surroundings.
German telepathy
Frédéric Hambalek's second feature film, ‘What Marielle Knows’, was one of the discoveries in the competition of this Berlinale. The 38-year-old made a name for himself as a screenwriter before realising his self-financed feature film ‘Modell Olimpia’ in 2019. Despite a minimal budget, it attracted international attention. This time, Hambalek was able to engage prominent actors such as Julia Jentsch and Felix Kramer to play a well-off married couple. They drive electric cars, have cool media jobs and live in a tastefully furnished house on the outskirts of the city.
After being slapped by a classmate, their daughter Marielle (Laeni Geiseler) suddenly develops telepathic abilities and knows everything her parents do and say in her absence. It doesn't take long for the family idyll to collapse when Marielle reveals at dinner that her mother has been secretly smoking and having sex with a colleague, while her father fails with his idea for a book cover but tells the opposite story at home. While children and young people today are monitored by their parents as much as possible, the film turns the tables. It mercilessly exposes the parents' secrets and little lies. ‘To save the situation, both try to score bonus points with their daughter’, as Felix Kramer commented at the press conference.
‘What Marielle Knows’ was one of the surprises in the competition of this Berlinale. Frédéric Hambalek , both author and director, impresses with his narrative talent and sure instinct for ironic twists.
Norwegian teenage love
16-year-old schoolgirl Johanne (Ella Øverbye) falls in love with her attractive teacher Johanna (Selome Emnetu). She records her hopes and feelings in her diary. The film opens with her commenting on this diary from off-screen, taking us on a journey through her adolescent passions. This is a fascinating and intelligently presented. When the imagined affair doesn't come to fruition, the teacher disappears from the story and the story takes a bland turn. Johanne prints out her diary and shows it to her grandmother Karin (Anne Marit Jacobsen), who works as a writer herself. She in turn passes it on to Johanne's mother Kristin (Anne Dahl Torp). As a result, the intimate diary turns into a family debate about female feelings and female desire. The diary becomes the subject of excessive discussion and ultimately a literary project.
After the exciting opening, Dag Johan Haugerud's ‘Drømmer’ (Dreams) contains a lot of talking and too little showing. What is missing is the perspective of the teacher Johanna, who is not given a voice of her own and is reduced to her role as a projection screen for teenage desire. Selome Emnetu, whose family comes from Eritrea, has a charismatic charisma and strong cinematic presence that puts the blonde Norwegians in the shade.
After ‘Longing’ and ‘Love’, ‘Dreams’ is the third part of a trilogy in which the Norwegian director explores the relationship between sex and love. The second part, ‘Sex’, which screened in competition in Venice in 2024, proved to be the strongest. There is also a lot of talking, but the characters are more exciting and have their own perspective.