Not for cowards
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Not for cowards |
| Country of production | Germany |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 2014 |
| length | 87:57 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Michael Rowitz |
| script | Martin Rauhaus based on an idea by Claudia Matschulla |
| production | CALyPSO Entertainment Brit Possardt |
| music | Egon Riedel |
| camera | Dietmar Koelzer |
| cut | Claudia Wolscht |
| occupation | |
| |
A German television film from 2014 is not for cowards . Filming in Cologne and the surrounding area began on April 15, 2013 and lasted until mid-May 2013. The tragi- comedy premiered on January 10, 2014 on Dem Erste . With 4.44 million viewers, a quota of 13.9% (target group of 14 to 49 year-olds: 0.85 million, 7.7%) was achieved, with the film taking third place that evening.
action
The 23-year-old music student Philip lives with two friends, the media studies student Ulli and the law student Mehmet, in a typical student flat share with the usual money problems. At the beginning of the film he meets Doro, the daughter of his landlord, and falls in love with her. His life is sufficiently filled with the examination obligations at the music college and his new love. His 72-year-old grandmother Lisbeth raised him after his parents passed away when he was five. However, since the former art and history teacher always keeps people around her at a distance with her sharp-tongued imperious manner, a loving relationship could never develop between the two. So he is reluctant to meet her once a week. Only monetary donations from her are welcome.
Suddenly, however, his grandmother had behavioral problems: she was picked up in confusion by the police in the city center, connected the television in the flower pot, claimed the remote control was broken and generally reacts very irritably and is becoming more and more forgetful.
Philip takes her to a clinic where the diagnosis of vascular dementia is made. Philip does not want to admit that at first and tries to ignore the problem. Until one day Lisbeth almost set fire to her apartment because she forgot the iron. Since her lease is terminated and Philip sees no other option, he is now looking for a place in the nursing home for his grandmother, which the resolute woman fights against. When she arrives at the nursing home, she doesn't want to be dictated to any rules and is immobilized by the nursing staff on the first evening after a small scuffle and fixed on the bed.
Lisbeth's neurologist also informs Philip about a possible suicide plan by his grandmother, whereupon the latter regrets his selfish behavior and, above all, driven by Doro, tries to find another solution for his grandmother. Without further ado, he first quarters the senior citizen in the shared apartment. His roommates are anything but enthusiastic about it at first, but over time Lisbeth becomes an important and popular member of the community. The relationship between grandmother and grandson also improves, slowly developing a trusting relationship in which both are there for each other. Even so, a more permanent solution has to be found for Lisbeth. Philips friend Doro takes on the role of "bad conscience", so that the two part in an argument.
Philip finally finds a home in Villa Grünfeld in the country, as he can no longer deny Lisbeth's increasingly poor health and she needs all-round care. Doro and Philip reconcile after a joint search for Lisbeth and a conversation they stimulated.
Lisbeth feels very comfortable in the home, as the former history teacher a. a. in the home manager Dr. Schneider finds an intellectually stimulating conversation partner. She lives in the home for another two years until one day she sets off on a bike ride, a situation that reminds her of the most beautiful moment of her childhood and never returns.
Philip left her with a farewell letter when she was still in a very clear state of mind, where she thanks again for the great time in the shared apartment and for the fact that he was like a real son to her as a grandson - even if it took some time. With Doro's support he finishes his music studies and sees Lisbeth sitting in the auditorium smiling encouragingly while his final piece ( Chopin's Nocturne Opus 9 No. 1) is being performed.
Reviews
“The tragic comedy by director Michael Rowitz impresses with its sensitive staging and multi-layered, serious characters. Grimme Prize winner Hannelore Hoger and Frederick Lau, who won the German Film Prize for 'Die Welle', form an idiosyncratic and touching team as grandma and grandson. Screenwriter Martin Rauhaus had already told the story of an unusual, cross-generational friendship in his template for the award-winning film 'Winterreise'. In 'Nothing for Cowards' he gives the story additional complexity through the difficult topic of dementia. "
“But what if someone feels that being easy-care is the dignified imposition that it is? The author Martin Rauhaus wrote a script for this question, which deals with the intrinsic value of stubbornness in a sometimes bitterly dry, sometimes humorous and humane way, and Michael Rowitz filmed it with two main actors who not only add credibility to the intergenerational history of relationships, but rather give dignity in a very unpathetic sense. "
“'Not for cowards' is not just no exception. Martin Rauhaus's screenplay could almost be taken as a textbook on how to prepare a societal problem from the private of a little story, how to play through all the questions in this private space that should be played through, and yet it is not didactic, not educational, not even sentimental. [...] With Frederick Lau Hannelore Hoger finally has an adequate opponent. You would have to be emotionally blind not to notice how they enjoy rubbing against each other, rocking each other up. "
“Dementia is a difficult subject. Is it good for an entertainment film? The answer is yes. Hannelore Hoger and Frederick Lau show how it's done. In the ARD film “Nothing for Feiglinge”, both of them balance between comedy and tragedy in fine doses. And they also show attitude "
“But 'Nothing for Cowards' is therefore never a solo for the Hoger, but rather shows the development that necessarily takes place in the area of care and dementia in a surprisingly relaxed, often cheerful way. [...] The rapprochement between the three young people and the older lady is full of comedy, which is, however, already permeated by warm melancholy. [...] The film continues the development without sentimentality, does not have to force the drama at all, but can rely on its two strong main actors. In the scenes with Hannelore Hoger, Frederick Lau once again proves his very special vulnerability: Hardly any actor his age can cry so heartbreakingly without the viewer being embarrassed. Hannelore Hoger, who had trumped up as tough Bella Block for years, has not been seen in such a fragile role for a long time. These two really don't show cowardice! "
Web links
- Not for cowards in theInternet Movie Database(English)
- Official website of Das Erste zum Film ( Memento from January 13, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
- ARD Degeto booklet for the film
Individual evidence
- ↑ She is called that by Philip and her friends, but the sign on her room in the first nursing home says Elisabeth.
- ↑ Start of shooting for "Nothing for Feiglinge" (AT): Hannelore Hoger and Frederick Lau shoot together in Cologne. Press release Das Erste, April 15, 2013, accessed on January 13, 2014 .
- ↑ "CSI: NY" is improving, ZDF "prosecutor" is doing well. dwdl.de, January 11, 2014, accessed on January 13, 2014 .
- ↑ Not even a million viewers for “Millionaire Election”. Focus Online, January 11, 2014, accessed January 13, 2014 .
- ↑ Official page on daserste.de ( Memento from January 13, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ What should I do with grandma? Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, January 10, 2014, accessed on January 13, 2014 .
- ↑ Elmar Krekeler: What to do with the demented grandma? In the boys' flat share! Die Welt, January 10, 2014, accessed on January 14, 2014 .
- ^ Jürgen Overkott: Hannelore Hoger and Frederick Lau in ARD film in top form. January 9, 2014, accessed January 13, 2014 .
- ↑ Torsten Wahl: The grandmother in the student flat share. Berliner Zeitung, January 9, 2014, accessed on January 13, 2014 .