Theme

One theme that I became aware of early on and continued throughout the festival was that this year’s program contained an abundance of stories about children. We experienced films that dealt with the moral struggle to save a terminally ill child (Zuo You – “In Love We Trust”), children used as a pawn for capitalism (There Will Be Blood), and children struggling with the painful loss of a parent (Lake Tahoe). We saw three films (Julia, Lady Jane, Gardens of the Night) that dealt with kidnapped children, one of which additionally addressed the horrors of sexual abuse (Gardens…). There was a story of children yearning for the love of a parent struggling to make ends meet (The Song of Sparrows). We saw in two separate films (Elegy, Restless) the venom that resonates and spews forth from a grownup who was abandoned by a father when only a child. There was a wonderful film (Kirschblüten – “Cherry Blossoms”) about a widower fulfilling the life dream of his recently deceased spouse highlighting how his adult children have all but abandoned him in today’s modern commuter society. He later found a platonic kindred spirit in a relationship with a homeless girl who was still grieving with the loss of her own mother. We experienced and I really mean “experienced” a violent police drama (Tropa de Elite – “Elite Squad”) centered around a man with a very dangerous job as he tries to pave the way for his retirement due to his wife’s pregnancy and his desire to remain alive to experience fatherhood to his soon to be born child. Another film (Bam Gua Nat – “Night and Day”) focuses on a man torn between two relationships who is lured back to his wife based upon a false pregnancy claim while he leaves behind his pregnant mistress in another country. We observed children (Kabei – “Our Mother”) reacting as their father is whisked away by the state to prison and witnessing their mother’s strength as she raises them in a time of war. Another film (Caos Calmo – “Quiet Chaos”) focused on a girl who serves as the central figure to help her father through the grief of the loss of her mother and his wife. We witnessed the triumphant message (Feuerherz – “Heart of Fire”) of what turning the other cheek really means for a child soldier in war torn Africa. And we contemplated a film (I’ve Loved You So Long…) showcasing the grief, struggle for forgiveness, and hope for rebirth of a woman recently released from prison. Her crime? She committed infanticide and we see how her conscious act has since infected the remainder of her family. And finally, a film (Ballast) that features a son who has recently lost his father set against the deep grief of his father’s twin.

These films are not only about children but also about redemption, hope, and rebirth, whether through forgiveness from loved ones or from society, or just the deep longing for an opportunity to start over.

The Berlinale has a long history of showcasing films with a distinct political message. And this may be a year of films with similar intimation. Jung’s collective unconscious is glaringly apparent as a good many of these stories share similar circumstances and themes. And as much as these films are about children, they are about death and resurrection as well. So, are these shared stories made by filmmakers from disparate parts of the world telling us that we are living in a culture that is essentially killing its children, effectively squashing our beautiful innocence? Are they asking if we are living in a time of transition between the death of certain cultural mainstays and waiting for the rebirth of others?

Only hindsight will tell us for sure…