{"id":16615,"date":"2021-06-03T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-03T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/?p=16615"},"modified":"2024-03-02T21:14:30","modified_gmt":"2024-03-03T05:14:30","slug":"review-undine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/review-undine\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Undine<\/i>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cIf you leave me, I\u2019ll have to kill you,\u201d Undine (Paula Beer) tells her cheating soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend Johannes (Jacob Matschenz) in the opening moments of Christian Petzold\u2019s Undine<\/em>. In any other movie, this might be a Glenn-Close-in-Fatal Attraction<\/em>-style threat. In Petzold\u2019s modern-day urban fairy tale, however, it\u2019s hinting at a deeper, mysterious truth, one that sits quietly to the side until the right moment, when it suddenly, tantalizingly reasserts itself. Undine<\/em>, which takes its cues from the ancient European myth that gave us The Little Mermaid<\/em>, is a platonic ideal of an arthouse film. It\u2019s understated, odd and engrossing. It seems like one kind of movie before it swerves deliciously into something else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beer\u2019s Undine is a historian with expertise on Berlin\u2019s urban development. There are hints from the very beginning, starting with her odd declaration to Johannes, that there\u2019s something different about her. Undine hears voices calling to her in the water. When she first encounters her next great love, Christoph (Franz Rogowski) at a cafe, the occasion is punctuated by the restaurant\u2019s aquarium suddenly exploding. On a date, Christoph, an industrial diver, takes Undine on a dive to the bottom of a river, where he\u2019s found a metal plate attached to a bridge with her name on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christoph is earnest and adorably goofy, the kind of guy who administers emergency CPR while singing the Bee Gees\u2019 \u201cStayin\u2019 Alive\u201d out loud to keep the rhythm. Before long, Undine has completely moved on from Johannes, but a chance encounter with her ex and a tragic accident–or possibly the fulfillment of a curse–compel her to carry out the vengeful duty she once swore. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Undine\u2019s<\/em> power lies primarily in the central relationship between Undine and Christoph, investing us in their connection before everything abruptly changes. Their relationship isn\u2019t necessarily earth-shattering, but it is lovely. Rogowski, who previously starred in Petzold\u2019s Transit<\/em> along with Beer, has a distinctive face and presence that make him a uniquely endearing romantic lead. He\u2019s unimposing, dad-joke sweet and affectionate with Beer\u2019s Undine in a way that feels lived-in, and Beer, for her part, fully reciprocates that chemistry. This is a couple you desperately want to see thrive, sleep in on Sundays and generate impossibly cute, precocious kids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When things do finally turn fantastical in Undine\u2019s<\/em> last third, all that emotional place-setting pays off handsomely. We feel Undine\u2019s pain and anger, and Beer carries out her character\u2019s mission with clear-eyed understanding that feels at once cold and resigned. Once she\u2019s done it, Petzold delivers an abrupt shock followed by a brilliant leap forward that serves to switch out the perspective and keep us on our toes. For most of its 92-minute running time, Undine<\/em> is a pleasant, intriguing romantic drama. In its last 30 minutes, it jolts into magical realist melodrama, using the established stakes to maintain the audience\u2019s interest as the story takes one strange turn after another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Magical realism aside, Undine<\/em> feels grounded in the portrayal of its central relationship, and refreshingly subtle in regard to the central mystery of its heroine\u2019s identity. It\u2019s a comfortably enigmatic experience, the kind that\u2019s well-suited to local arthouse theaters where you can grab a drink and process with friends afterward. We\u2019re slowly starting to get back to a space where we can do that, but even if you can\u2019t get back to a theater just yet, Petzold\u2019s latest is worth checking out and pondering. \"\"\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

“Undine” is in select theaters and on digital and VOD platforms Friday.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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