Although the film hasn’t even had a day to sit, Christian Petzold‘s Phoenix is the first 2015 release to leave me genuinely beguiled. It isn’t very difficult to follow on almost any sort of narrative level — the most I’d suggest is that reading a brief outline beforehand might clear up one or two confusions — nor do I fail to recognize that this is, in many respects, Vertigo from the female’s perspective — i.e. if Vertigo was set the day after Germany’s surrender and Judy Barton was a concentration-camp survivor. (And, yes, Nina Hoss‘ leading turn deserves to be ranked with Hitchcock’s iciest of icy blondes.) What’s beguiling is the extent to which this is or isn’t a (excuse the beaten-to-death term) formally classical, largely staid bit of work elevated by occasional flourishes and a fascinating set-up. But then, just as we begin settling into a central mode, the picture reconfigures narrative and thematic underpinnings with a suggestion, correction, clarification, or introduction.
Ahead of Phoenix‘s release next month, we have a trailer that does a remarkably concise job of selling this film’s appeal and (some of its) peculiarities. While I’m usually of the mind that previews for anything you’re interested in should almost always be skipped, I can nevertheless recognize that it might sell the unfamiliar or unconvinced on a film that, regardless of its flaws, often has the ability to entrance.
Watch the trailer below (via Apple):
Synopsis:
A riveting mystery of identity unfolds against the turmoil of post-World War II Germany in the stunning new film from acclaimed director Christian Petzold (Barbara). Nelly (Nina Hoss), a German-Jewish nightclub singer, has survived a concentration camp, but with her face disfigured by a bullet wound. After reconstructive surgery, Nelly emerges with a new face, one similar but different enough that her former husband, Johnny (Ronald Zehrfeld), doesn’t recognize her. Rather than reveal herself, Nelly walks into a dangerous game of duplicity and disguise as she tries to figure out if the man she loves may have betrayed her to the Nazis. Evoking the haunted mood of post-war Berlin, Phoenix weaves a complex tale of a nation’s tragedy and a woman’s search for answers as it builds towards an unforgettable, heart-stopping climax.
Phoenix will enter a limited release on July 24.