A light between the clouds

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Movie
German title A light between the clouds
Original title Streha mes reve
Country of production Albania
original language Albanian
Publishing year 2018
length 84 minutes
Age rating FSK 0
Rod
Director Robert Budina
script Robert Budina
production Sabina Kodra
music Marius Eleftarache
camera Marius Panduru
cut Stefan Tatu
occupation

A light between the clouds (original title Streha mes reve ) is the second feature film by the Albanian film producer and theater director Robert Budina , brother of Edmond Budina . It was shown at the Munich Film Festival 2019 and was released in German cinemas on September 19, 2019. The subject of the film is religious tolerance in a world of increasing irreconcilable contradictions.

action

The shepherd Besnik looks after the goats in an Albanian mountain village where Muslims and Christians live. He is a devout Muslim. His father is a communist and was a supporter of Enver Hoxha's regime . He forcibly prevented Besnik from marrying his love, a girl from a family who did not fit into his father's communist pattern. Since then, Besnik has had psychological problems. Sometimes noises overwhelm him. He is considered disabled in the village, but is generally recognized as a reliable shepherd and devout Muslim. The school children love him because he plays soccer with them. His mother was a Catholic but died early. His brother and his family emigrated to Greece because of the living conditions and adopted the Greek Orthodox faith in order to be better recognized there. His sister lives as a devout Muslim with her family in Albania. Now he lives alone with his father in the village and devotedly cares for the terminally ill.

After an intense prayer in the pasture, Besnik has an inspiration. After the prayer in the old mosque of the village, he exposes a reddish stain under the interior plaster, to the alienation of the Imam. The imam brings him to close it again with plaster. But before that can be done, two women from the protection of monuments come from Tirana who had found out about the spot. They tell the story of the mosque. It was a church before the conquest by the Ottomans in the second half of the 15th century and was rededicated as a mosque under Ottoman rule. The Ottomans allowed the double use by Muslims and Christians. This reddish stain was part of the Christian fresco that the two restorers can uncover and restore. Besnik suggests that this dual use could be reintroduced, especially since the Christians of the village had to go a long way to get to a church. The village's Islamic community agrees to this dual use. Besnik, together with one of the restorers, Vilma, is allowed to bring this offer to the Catholic priest in the distant church. He is unsure and suspicious of this unusual offer. He wants to think about it.

Besnik's brother with family and also his sister with family come to visit the terminally ill father, but also to insure their inheritance. The meal together was impressive: the communist father, Besnik, the sister's Islamic family and the son's Christian family at one table. This leads to misunderstandings, but these do not escalate through the authority of the father.

Vilma finds the shy Besnik attractive. On a mountain hike, both of them spend the night at Besnik's alpine hut. She discovers that Besnik is carving and recognizes his special talent. She expresses interest in Besnik by the campfire. But Besnik is too shy so that her attempt to kiss fails. Besnik also feels something for Vilma, and his approach fails because of his feeling of inability. Vilma sleeps in the hut while Besnik finishes carving his female figure by the campfire. He can only express all his feelings in the carving.

The Islamic villagers and Besnik's sister eyed the looming relationship between Besnik and Vilma with suspicion. The sister explains to Vilma that Besnik is mentally ill, the Islamic villagers believe that Besnik only got them to use the mosque twice because it was controlled by Vilma, especially since Christian villagers still boast and point out that the mosque was previously a church was. Besnik suffers a mental attack and flees. When the restoration work is finished, Vilma sadly says goodbye to Besnik, who is now shy again. She gives him a carving knife. A gesture of hope, at least for Besnik's gift as a wood carver.

Besnik's father dies. In his will he decreed that the homestead would be given to whoever looked after Besnik. This is supposed to be Alban, the Christian brother. Alban then wants to drive his sister from the court. When Besnik found out, he actively intervened. He forces Alban to allow both he and his sister to take care of him and therefore both families to get the homestead. So the farm is shared between both families. But supposedly there is now only room for Besnik in the barn. The attempt to eat together now fails because of the different religious rituals. This now also leads to the division of the common table.

Besnik is now more with his goats because it is difficult for him to stay in the father's house of the separation. He asks the imam why everyone loves their God but people hate one another. But as a sign of hope, his niece, the daughter of the Islamic sister, keeps in touch with him and brings him the food. Together they remember the children's songs of the Catholic mother and grandmother.

At the end of the film, the common use of the mosque by the Catholics and the Muslims is common, even if it is difficult for the Imam. The final picture: The shepherd Besnik comes with his flock directly towards the cinema audience.

production

Robert Budina founded the Albanian film company ERAFILM Production Company together with Sabina Kodra in 2001. The film was produced in coproduction with the Romanian film company Digital Cube and with the support of Albanian television (Albanian National Center of Cinematography - RTSH ).

reception

Britta Schmeis in the EPD film review writes: “Budina doesn't explain much. … Budina lets Besnik watch, who always stays at a distance. ... The filmmaker touches on many topics, not just the conflict between religions and the question of tolerance and the fragile cohesion of communities. He also allows simple rural life to meet modernity. ... And yet this film is definitely worth seeing, it is a plea for tolerance in pleasantly calm pictures and told full of poetry. "

Oliver Armknecht in Filmrezensions.de writes: “Why are you all arguing? - The Albanian director and screenwriter Robert Budina does not provide an answer. He neither reveals whether Besnik actually has a special relationship with God, nor whether this God even exists. A light above the clouds speaks very often about religion and the various beliefs, but takes no position. The film stays out of the argument about what's right. It is more important to address the dispute as such and to work for an end to it. "

Heidi Strobel in the film service film review writes: “Besnik's appearance, on the other hand, stands for lived religious tolerance. With his idea of ​​God's mercy, he not only embodies a liberal direction of Islam, but also recalls central figures of Christianity. It refers to the image of Christ as a good shepherd. ... However, wherever strife and discord rage, the longing for love also grows. This is how a tender love story unfolds between the restorer Vilma and the goatherd Besnik. The soul mates get closer by talking about their life and art. Because truth, beauty and mercy are values ​​that create connections between people. "

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Release certificate for a light between the clouds . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry (PDF). Template: FSK / maintenance / type not set and Par. 1 longer than 4 characters
  2. ↑ Review of A light between the clouds | epd film. Retrieved October 3, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Oliver Armknecht: A light between the clouds. In: Film-Rezensions.de. June 25, 2019, accessed on October 3, 2019 (German).
  4. ↑ A light between the clouds. Retrieved October 3, 2019 .