Starts April 22
Vincent, Marie and Alexander meet in a therapy center for young adults. Vincent suffers from Tourette syndrome, Marie from anorexia, and Alexander from obsessive-compulsive orderliness. Without a care for possible consequences, they steal a car from their therapist Dr. Rose and set off for the coast of Italy. Before her death, Vincent promised his mother to scatter her ashes (which he conveniently carries in a candy tin) into the sea (Meer). From this point it’s a road movie with Dr. Rose and Vincent’s obnoxiously well-to-do father in hot pursuit. As a successful politician facing re-election, this father cannot risk adverse publicity, especially not due to his kid with the tic who has already been the cause of too many headaches in his young life.
This small and wonderful German film will make you smile at everyone upon leaving the cinema. The German actors Florian David Fitz, Karoline Herfurth, Heino Ferch, Katharina Müller-Elmau, and Johannes Allmayer make their characters come alive. By overcoming small hindrances and coping with each other in crowded conditions, each one becomes more tolerant; each is a better person with a new lease on life. This is such an optimistic film. The director Ralf Huettner is certainly influential in the film’s success but this time the actor Florian David Fitz stands out as someone to keep an eye on. He not only acts, but wrote the script. Born in Munich in 1974, he graduated from the Boston Conservatory with honors and toured Europe with the stage version of the Rocky Horror Show. He has appeared on stage in Munich, as well as on television, e.g., as Dr. Marc Meier in the RTL-TV series “Doctor’s Diary.” This would be a good film for practicing German.