The Test of Courage (2010)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The test of courage |
| Country of production |
Germany Austria |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 2010 |
| length | 90 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Holger Barthel |
| script | Ivo Schneider |
| production |
Dieter Pochlatko , epo-film Vienna, Graz for mdr, orf |
| music | Yull-Win Mak |
| camera | Hermann Dunzendorfer |
| cut | Thomas Knöpfel |
| occupation | |
| |
The test of courage is a German-Austrian television film by Holger Barthel from 2010.
action
Sabine works as a family judge in Vienna , but she has no family herself. One day she receives an invitation to a class reunion from Leonhardt, her first great love. After 20 years, the former schoolmates come together in Steinbach an der Steyr . She meets with Mia, who has been unemployed for a long time, and sees Ferdinand again, who is now mayor of the town and tells her that her best friend from school, Karin, has moved away and therefore not come. Even her childhood sweetheart Leonhardt does not show up at the meeting.
Ferdinand receives a call from Leonhardt: His early adolescent daughter Lena is after tutoring with Dr. Körbler, a retired teacher, did not come home. At first everyone thinks that Lena is late or is out with her friends. Leonhardt and his Greek wife Sofia become more and more desperate the more time goes by. Finally, the police order a search for Lena, but she has disappeared. You can only find her bike, which was hidden in a bush near the Steyr. With his far-reaching connections, Körbler organized a federal army unit to Steinbach, which even took part in the search with the help of helicopters.
After Sabine comes across the new grave of her school friend while visiting her mother's grave in the cemetery, she confronts Ferdinand, who confesses to her that Karin has committed suicide. This brings back painful memories for Sabine. She confesses to Leonhardt that Dr. Körbler had been abused. She and her friend Karin had to present themselves naked in front of him. That was also the reason why she couldn't get involved in a relationship with Leonhardt. Körbler is popular in the village. He is committed to the community. For years he has been caring for his wealthy wife, who is dependent on a wheelchair after a stroke . All of the local women whom Körbler immorally touched as children and photographed in pornography are silent about these incidents. Sabine anonymously sends Leonhardt and Sofia a piece of paper stating that Körbler is a pedophile . In the drugstore, she takes photos for Körbler that show Lena and other girls in the swimming pool. However, the police's hands are tied in the absence of concrete evidence.
Lena is found alive in the forest. She had been challenged by her friends to a test of courage in which she was supposed to stay for three days in a dark, locked cellar. Your questioning does not reveal any evidence that Körbler has molested her or her friends. Mayor Ferdinand now wants all rumors about Körbler to come to an end and unequivocally urges Sabine to leave the place. The new police officer in the village, Meier, tries to get close to the truth and asks Melanie, who works as a cleaning lady in the Körbler house. As a child she was abused by Körbler. While cleaning, she found one of the nude pictures Körbler took of Sabine and Karin as young girls. She is also silent to the police, but places the nude photo in Sabine's car before she drives back to Vienna.
When Sabine finds the photo in her car, she immediately returns to Steinbach. While the residents of the village are celebrating Lena's rescue in the inn, Sabine Körbler's house. In the basement she finds a photo lab with folders full of child pornography photos, sorted by the names of the girls. Sabine puts these files in a garbage bag to leave the house when Mia suddenly stands in front of her and tries to prevent her. Mia wants to avoid the photos triggering a scandal, as Körbler promised the community a larger sum of money in the event of his wife's death, which would also secure a job for Mia. In a scuffle on the stairs, Mia is pushed by Sabine and remains injured in the basement.
In the meantime, Dr. Körbler returns home and meets Sabine and his wife there. During the event at the inn, Körbler missed his heart tablets. He is now looking for it in the house, but cannot find any. Meanwhile, Sabine accuses him of stealing her youth, but Körbler lacks insight. He paid Sabine for the photos at the time, so she was not allowed to take the photos away from him. In the middle of the conversation, Dr. Körbler and dies. Sabine picks up the phone, but hesitates after a clear eye sign from Körbler's wife and only dials the emergency call after his death. Melanie meanwhile rinses out all of Dr. Körbler, which she had taken, through the drain of a sink.
The police officially assume that Körbler died naturally from heart failure. Meier does not pursue the suspicion of failure to provide assistance that his colleague expresses to him. Instead, he reminds him of his incorrect approach during the dependency investigation in the Lena case, which came about through the influence of the mayor. In the end, Meier comes to Sabine, who burns all the nude photos from Körbler's cellar on a gravel bank on the riverbank. Sabine explains to Meier that she has done everything to face her past. With the strong psychological shock that was still at work, she must now try to cope. Meier wishes her a lot of strength for the future.
production
The test of courage is based on the novel of the same name by Lisa Lercher . The film was shot in Upper Austria from September to October 2009 and then completed in December 2009. It ran on TV for the first time on November 24, 2010 on ORF 2 . The German television premiere took place on May 11, 2011 on the first . With 5.26 million viewers, the German premiere was a ratings success.
Web links
- The test of courage in the Internet Movie Database (English)