Days of the Last Snow (film)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Days of the last snow |
| Country of production | Germany |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 2019 |
| length | 90 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Lars-Gunnar Lotz |
| script | Nils-Morten Osburg |
| production |
Wolfgang Cimera Hanna V. Kienbaum Silke Pützer |
| music | Daniel Benjamin |
| camera | Jan Prahl |
| cut | Philipp Thomas |
| occupation | |
| |
Days of the Last Snow is a German television film by Lars-Gunnar Lotz from 2019 , which was commissioned and produced for ZDF . It is based on the detective novel of the same name by the German writer Jan Costin Wagner , published in 2014 . The originally Finnish locations Helsinki and Salo have been replaced in the film by Frankfurt am Main and Hamburg . Henry Hübchen , Bjarne Mädel , Barnaby Metschurat and Victoria Mayer as well as Victoria Trauttmansdorff , Christina Große , Mercedes Müller and Jannik Schümann play the leading roles .
The film, which was broadcast for the first time on ZDF as “TV film of the week”, was awarded the audience prize as part of the German TV Crime Prize 2020. "In addition to the strong acting presence, this film shows in an 'outstanding way how human action can end in one, or in this case, even two linked criminal cases'."
action
The family man Lars Eckert comes off the road with his car. His eleven-year-old daughter Anna, whom he had just picked up from ice hockey training, dies in the tragic accident. Although Eckert is certain that he was blinded by a kind of flash of light in the thick snowstorm, not only the police assume that there is no third-party fault, but also his wife Kirsten.
The investigative chief detective Johannes Fischer begins to shed light on the last few days in the Eckerts' family life. One day after this fatal accident, Fischer is called to another case. The German-Romanian student of art history Lisa Marin was found shot dead on a park bench. The focus of the investigation is the married Hamburg banker Markus Sellin, who had a secret affair with the young woman. Fischer ascertains that the Sellins' marriage is under heavy strain, as Tanja Sellin got drunk in her depressive phases and her husband has since given up. Sellin had not only financed an apartment for Lisa Marin, but also provided for her living. Unhappy in his marriage, he was enchanted by the lust for life and the aesthetic spirit of Marin. That there were other men who had fallen for the young woman turns out when Fischer and his superior Konstanze Satorius digs into Marin's past with another colleague, Lutz Wegener. It seems that Marin had a certain interest in exploiting men financially and leading them to ruin, preferring especially good family fathers.
It turns out that there was a momentous dispute between Sellin and Marin, which resulted in the disappointed banker racing through the night in his car and unintentionally pushing Eckert's car off the road.
production
Production notes, filming
Days of Last Snow was filmed from February 5th to March 8th, 2019. The film was produced by Network Movie Film- und Fernsehproduktion GmbH. The editorial team for ZDF was Stefanie von Heydwolff and Karina Ulitzsch.
background
Bjarne Mädel, who plays the banker Markus Sellin, spoke about the film in the Hamburger Abendblatt . In the days of the last snow he wanted to play because of his colleagues, because the entire ensemble was “really outstanding”. He was more than happy about Mercedes Müller as a play partner, and despite the great age difference, it wasn't difficult for him to fall in love with her in the film. In addition, he was “excited” about working with Henry Hübchen. This “totally shaped” him in terms of his understanding of theater and his acting development. But the plot of the film based on Wagner's novel also "thrilled" him. What he found so great in the novel was "implemented really well" in the film. This makes the film “exciting and surprising at the same time”. The girl recommended the film with the words: “I would say take a pack of handkerchiefs with you on the sofa, because it's really a tough drama. It lives from the actors, it's filmed and acted great. Everyone is great, but Victoria Mayer is awesome. ”And he would also say to his own grandmother:“ You can also see me in a suit because I play a banker. So in a role that I rarely get offered: a successful businessman. "
publication
The film premiered on August 31, 2019 at the Festival of German Films in Ludwigshafen, and was also presented on October 15, 2019 at the Cologne Film Festival Cologne and during the Nordic Film Days Lübeck .
After the days of the last snow were available in advance from January 27, 2020 in the ZDF media library, the first broadcast on television took place on February 3, 2020 on ZDF .
reception
Audience rating
When it first aired, the film was watched by 6.42 million viewers. The market share was 20.7 percent.
criticism
The critics of the TV magazine TV Spielfilm gave the film two out of three possible points for quality and excitement, gave the thumbs up and drew the conclusion: “Great acting at its best”. Director Lars-Gunnar Lotz narrates “the interweaving of the characters skillfully in flashbacks”, whereby “his cast smooths out some script weaknesses”. Theater star Victoria Trauttmansdorff received special mention.
Oliver Armknecht gave the film six out of ten possible points on film-rezensions.de and summarized his criticism as follows: “'Days of the Last Snow' begins as a heartbreaking drama about a couple who lost their daughter, but combines that soon with a parallel criminal case. Unfortunately, this is much less interesting, especially since the book adaptation links both strands in a rather clumsy way. Due to the strong ensemble and the beautiful pictures, the TV production is still worth seeing. "
Rainer Tittelbach gave the film 5.5 out of 6 possible stars on his page tittelbach.tv and praised it: “Despite a commissioner who acts as a link between the two narrative strands - an accident resulting in death and a new love - both books and films are not Suspense thrillers, rather they are character study and drama that show the possibilities of how to deal with death and grief, loneliness and pain. The film has philosophical depth, it reflects the tragic circumstances of being human, instead of looking for a practical, psychological solution, as often themed TV films do. “Days of the Last Snow” is a top cast, a small revelation in terms of dramaturgy and film aesthetics. ”There are“ not often films on German television that keep so many images in your mind, ”says Tittelbach. “The pictures of the commissioner by the sea, bathed in monochrome night blue, also left a strong impression”. The critic also spoke of “great actors: Hübchen and the four Ms: Mädel, Metschurat, Mayer, Müller - and Christina Große, who [has] so few scenes, but whose anguished face [eats into] memory. A tragedy seldom comes alone (in this film it is a good thing). But also the great quality of this sustainable TV drama [have] many faces and names ”.
Tilmann P. Gangloff took on the film for evangelisch.de and wrote: Sometimes a tiny moment of inattention is enough to wipe out a life. In 'Days of the Last Snow', two paths of fate cross at this moment. One ultimately leads into eternal darkness. The direction of the other is still open, but seems to be mapped out unless another small miracle happens. Gangloff also said that the film was not “a crime thriller in the traditional sense”. It is "but not just the story that makes the 'Days of the Last Snow' a great film". The work is “cinematically appealing”, “not least because of the cool late winter image design that does without splashes of color […], which gives the drama a very special atmosphere”. [...] "Especially the speechless moments of mourning when Lars and Kirsten Eckert are not able" to "answer the phone" are "implemented with great sensitivity". This also applies "to the scenes that have a completely different omen: Lisa raves about a painting in the museum, but Markus only has eyes for her".
Heike Hupertz dealt with the film in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and said that “one could almost speak of a great film”. Hupertz continued: “The mood is and remains subdued, grief is darkened by guilt, tragedy is revealed by the desire for a piece of sunshine. 'Days of the Last Snow', freely adapted as a screenplay from Jan Costin Wagner, adapted as a screenplay by Nils-Morten Osburg, is an appealing representative of Scandi Noir in terms of film aesthetics. ”In conclusion, the critic said:“ If you had done without the flat scenes in the successful banking environment [... ]; if 'Tage des last Schnees' had kept its elegiac note throughout, then one could speak of a great film. "
For the Tagesspiegel , Kurt Sagatz explained that the film “goes far beyond the usual suspense thriller”. The author of the template, Jan Costin Wagner, certified that the script had retained “the spirit of the book”. Henry Hübchen plays Commissioner Fischer, who knows “the pain” “that death can cause”, “impressively melancholy”. Sagatz said that director Lars-Gunnar Lotz succeeded in “the trick of keeping the storylines - told in changing time levels - together in such a way that the core of the story does not fall apart”. In the film, the images should “speak for themselves”. It is true that “death and how to deal with it” is no longer a taboo in film and television. But what it means for the bereaved, "how often the fight back to life is hopeless" for them, is "often excluded. Not so in 'Days of the Last Snow' ”.
Sylvia Staude summarized in the Frankfurter Rundschau : “'Days of the Last Snow' refrains from any false drama, including any judgment about people, regardless of whether they are prostituting themselves or cheating. A cautiousness that is entirely in keeping with the novel. "
The summary by Kathrin Hollmer, who praised it in the Süddeutsche Zeitung , was similarly positive : “Successful crime novels are often filmed like mass-produced goods. 'Days of the Last Snow', however, touches on many levels. ”Like the book,“ the film is also more than a thriller ”. The strength of the novel series lies "in the deep insights into the emotional world" of the characters. The scriptwriter and director would have “translated them into the film in a masterly way”. The different time levels are "cleverly interwoven". Some scenes, [...], are "difficult to bear". Jan Prahl's camera creates “touching images that will be remembered for a long time”, “the main roles in particular” are “played excellently”.
The response on the film service side was also positive: melancholy, haunting crime drama, in which the character's grief and melancholy set the tone rather than the investigation. Thanks to great actors and the rejection of simple resolutions, the film achieves a rare density and depth. - Worth seeing from 16.
Julian Miller fromquotemeter.de wrote at the beginning of his review: “'Days of the last snow' is a film that does a lot of things right and still ends as a bitter disappointment - worth seeing, and yet sobering." Miller said, with the two stories told here and the handpicked cast "would have been" great television possible ": Henry Hübchen played" with wonderful warmth a grieving old man, Bjarne Mädel "put on" his everyday people with a pleasant casualness that didn't have to emphasize his everyday life again as something extraordinary " , and Mercedes Müller depicts "her character with an impressive emotional ambivalence without having to resort to obvious, clichéd motifs". In conclusion, Miller, who let the quota meter turn down to 70 percent, stated: “But despite all these particularly strong representations - and precisely because so much was done right in the story, only to then necessarily take the everyday, conventional, inartistic path, - this film is a big disappointment. Playing with the points of view, the shifted time levels and the characters who (at first) do not know each other remains a game, a pastime, a puzzle fun, and must never be the impetus for deep reflection or an honest, strong, engaging encounter with the negotiated topics. "
Web links
- Day of last snow in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Days of the last snow at crew united
- Days of the last snow see page zdf.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ The 2020 award winners at the German TV Crime Festival.
- ↑ Days of the Last Snow, TV-Film, 2019, ZDF, Drama, Crime, Germany | Crew United
- ↑ Days of the last snow see page networkmovie.de
- ↑ Days of the Last Snow In: Hamburger Abendblatt , February 3, 2020. Accessed on May 11, 2020.
- ↑ a b Rainer Tittelbach : TV film "Days of the Last Snow". Pretty, girl, Metschurat, Mayer, Osburg, Lotz. Without this German inwardness! see page tittelbach.tv. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ↑ Days of the Last Snow Short review on tvspielfilm.de. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ↑ Tilmann P. Gangloff : TV tip: “Days of the last snow” (ZDF) see page evangelisch.de, February 3, 2020. Accessed on May 11, 2020.
- ↑ Heike Hupertz: And suddenly no more consolation, nowhere In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , February 3, 2020. Accessed on May 11, 2020.
- ↑ Kurt Sagatz: Death, and how we live with it In: Der Tagesspiegel , February 2, 2020. Retrieved on May 11, 2020.
- ↑ Sylvia Staude: The insomnia of the bereaved In: Frankfurter Rundschau , February 3, 2020. Retrieved on May 11, 2020.
- ↑ Kathrin Hollmer: In der Kälte In: Süddeutsche Zeitung , February 2, 2020. Accessed on May 11, 2020.
- ↑ Days of the last snow. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed May 11, 2020 .
- ↑ Julian Miller: Days of the last snow see page quotenmeter.de, February 3, 2020. Accessed on May 11, 2020.