Saturday, November 16 at 6pm
Austria, 2018, 96 min., Director/Screenplay: Michael Kreihsl, screenplay based on the play "Die Wunderübung" by Daniel Glattauer, Cast: Aglaia Szysykowitz, Devid Striesow, Erwin Steinhauer
Rating: PG-13
It was love at first sight, back when they dived together into the warm, clear waters of the Red Sea. Perfect harmony and complete trust in each other, but only under the crystalline surface. Perhaps they should have never resurfaced? Now, many years of marriage later, Joana and Valentin Dorek continue to poison each other with their toxic relationship. A session with a couples therapist seems to be the last rescue for their relationship. His attempts to get the problems of the two under control fail repeatedly; after all, Joana already knows everything that her husband is about to say, so why let him speak at all? Meanwhile, Valentin is quick to dismiss his wife’s assessment of their emotional disconnection as irrational and overly sensitive. But, as it turns out, not only the couple has problems – the therapist also seems to deal with some troubles of his own.
Director Michael Kreihsl’s wonderful comedy on marriage counseling is an adaptation of the successful play and bestselling book by Daniel Glattauer. Loaded with biting and witty dialogue and astounding twists that do not exclude the therapist himself, the film offers fascinating lessons on the desolate – but not desperate – love affair, allowing audiences much room for identification with its rather frustrating protagonists.
Michael Kreihsl (b. in Vienna in 1958) studied art history and archaeology before graduating from a training program to become a painting restorer. Afterwards, he studied directing at the Vienna University for Music and Performing Arts, Department of Film and Television. Then he completed a postgraduate study at New York University’s Department of Film and Television. This education was followed by teaching engagements at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, FH Fachhochschule des BFI Vienna, and the University of Vienna’s Department of Film and Television. Michael Kreihsl is a member of the German Film Academy.
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