My friend ALEX RAPHAEL asked me to review a foreign film, and I happily obliged. I selected the 2009 German-language film written and directed by Michael Haneke and filmed by Christian Berger. The White Ribbon is placed at the brink of World War I. Filmed in black and white, the story focuses on the ordinary people of a village ruled by the authoritarian influences of a baron, a pastor, and a doctor. These elders maintain order and oversee traditions. When random events upset this hierarchical relationship, their simple world becomes warped and shrouded in mystery.
An old narrator (Ernst Jacobi) reflects back to a pivotal time, when in his youth, he was the school teacher (Christian Friedel) who tried to solve a mystery. Someone placed a tripwire across the path of the doctor who was out for his daily horse ride. A deformed boy is brutalized. A barn is torched. Who is doing this? It’s a macabre culture masterfully created by Michael Haneke. Authority is never questioned and rules are followed. Here, adults recite the adages “Children are meant to be seen and not heard” and “Spare the rod or spoil the child”. Indulged behind closed doors are deviant actions and secretive liaisons. As time continues and no suspects are brought to trial, the pace quickens as terrorized targets are the undesirables. The eerie energy engulfs the village, achieved through exquisite cinematography.
Is anyone innocent? Who is guilty? Maybe everyone. Is this a film which attempts to show the roots of Nazism? It might be a stretch, but The White Ribbon does show a seemingly “normal” rural village that grows out of control and fear freezes the innocent to inaction.
The works of Austrian Michele Haneke include Funny Games (1997) about a terrorized couple; The Piano Teacher (2001), a woman is suffocated by her mother and rebels in erotic ways; Cache (2005) features a Parisian couple terrorized by videos that link a secret in their past; and Amour (2012) is about the ultimate sacrifice of a Parisian couple. Guilt, secrets, suicide, terror, and repression are themes in Haneke’s works. I often wonder how the notorious heritage of Nazism adversely affected everyone who survived the war. Like first generation Jewish survivors of the Holocaust who suffered psychologically, Haneke, born in 1943, represents the first generation German who had to grow up bearing the guilt of it all. That angst sure seems to have bled into his films. Speculation aside, I highly recommend The White Ribbon.
Cindy Bruchman 
A marvellous film from Haneke, and very atmospheric in Black and White, giving a timeless feel to the production. One of my favourites from recent years.
If you like this, I can also recommend ‘Everlasting Moments’, one of my favourite foreign language films of all time.
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/everlasting-moments-2009
Best wishes from England. Pete.
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Thanks for the tip, Pete. I’ll take a look! 🙂
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You won’t regret it Cindy. x
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I’ve seen two Haneke movies – the Funny Games U.S. remake which I loathed more than almost anything and this, which I quite liked. Great post!
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I’m glad you liked it! Bet you would like ‘The Piano Teacher’. It’s erotic and crazy.
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Did you see the original of Funny games? Far better that the word-by-word remake, and more sinister.
Regards, Pete.
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I did not… I caught the newest one one day and hated it so much I never wanted to try the original…..
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Oh well, fair enough. The list of those awful remakes makes for depressing reading; Nikita, The Vanishing, etc,.
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You know – I just watched Nikita a week or so ago for the first time ever and I didn’t love it. I remember seeing the remake back in the day and I thought I liked it but that was twenty years ago and it might just be that I thought Bridget Fonda was hot…..
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The original Nikita remains my favourite of Besson’s films. Sorry you didn’t like it that much, but we all have different tastes of course.
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Looks moving and upsetting.
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It’s creepy and revealing but it’s not a horror film by any of today’s standards. I liked the cinematography the best.
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Yes, it looks well done.
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I think he is portraying the geeration who would become Nazis with concentration camps etc during their warped childhoods. The dates are just about right.
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I’ve read some think this is a stretch (Ebert) but I think there’s a lot of subliminal things going on. Certainly a loss of innocence.
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Not yet got round to this film, but just ordered the 10 Movie box-set from Amazon of Haneke’s work having only seen Hidden.
Nice review!
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Wow! That’s a set I’d like to have. I hope you like it as much as I. Thanks for commenting.
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I just watched this one too. Still traumatized.
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Try reading a book 😉
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Ooops, Jay- Sorry, matched the right thread to the wrong film. Ignore my last comment to you 😦
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I’m a Haneke fanboy — one of the few modern filmmakers I follow. I think he’s a genius. He’s the antithesis of today’s camera-jerking nonsense. My favorite Haneke is Cache, but White Ribbon is great too.
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I loved Amour….
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Oh this one has been on my to-watch list for some time, Cindy. Better get on it soon!
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I think you will like it — the cinematography is great.
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I’d love to watch this. Love Michael Haneke’s work. So far I’ve only seen La Pianiste, Caché and Amour.
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I recommend this one, Nuwansen. The school master’s blushing girlfriend played by actress Leonie Benesch is perfect. In fact, all the acting is great.
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I have been wanting to see this one. I viewed “Funny Games” and “Cache” last week. I always thought “Amour” was a beautiful film. I didn’t care for “Funny Games.” I understand what it was trying to say, but I don’t think it went about saying it in the right manner. In the end it is somewhat hypocritical (and distracting). “Cache” was interesting, and I enjoyed it much more. In any case, I enjoyed the post. 🙂
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Thank you for stopping by and commenting :). I’d be curious to hear if you liked it. I wish he’d make a new film. Doesn’t seem like there’s anything in the works. I think he’s an interesting director/story teller.
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He is interesting. I should note that my comments about “Funny Games” were about his original version, and not his remake. I enjoyed the others very much.
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