A Journey Into the Depths of Post-War Ruins: “Fatherland” Trailer Unveiled, Starring Sandra Hüller and Directed by Paweł Pawlikowski
According to the CinemaDrame News Agency, Paweł Pawlikowski’s delicate, black-and-white post-war road movie was considered one of the top contenders for the Palme d’Or at this year’s recently concluded Cannes Film Festival. Although the film ultimately earned Pawlikowski the Best Director award—shared jointly with Los Javis for “The Black Ball,” and marking a prize Pawlikowski previously won in 2018 for “Cold War”—”Fatherland” has already established itself out of the Cannes competition as an early and formidable Oscar contender.
The film stars Sandra Hüller as actress and writer Erika Mann, alongside Hanns Zischler as her father, the renowned author Thomas Mann. Set in 1949, the narrative follows the father and daughter as they travel in a black Buick from American-controlled Frankfurt to Soviet-occupied Weimar in East Germany, after more than a decade of exile living in California. The purpose of their journey is for Thomas Mann to accept the Goethe Prize for his literary achievements, navigating a landscape completely devastated by the war. Meanwhile, their familial bond is deeply fractured—a raw wound stemming from Erika’s relationship with her twin brother, Klaus Mann, played by August Diehl.
Reflecting on casting Sandra Hüller, Pawlikowski notes: “You watch the change and transformation right on her face, and it happens in the most genuine way possible. She doesn’t pretend to act at all. She might have a polite smile on her lips, but in her eyes… look at what’s happening there! In one of the takes, emotions brilliantly surface entirely outside the script and dictated acting, and the story unfolds in a mysterious way.”
Indeed, with this film, Sandra Hüller stands as one of the frontrunners for a Best Actress nomination. She is also drawing significant attention for her performance in Markus Schleinzer’s “Rose,” which won her the Best Actress award at the Berlin International Film Festival. Additionally, Hüller, who was previously Oscar-nominated for “Anatomy of a Fall,” is firmly in the Best Supporting Actress race this year for “Project Hail Mary.”
Featuring melancholic black-and-white cinematography, a classic aspect ratio, and undercurrents of fatalism operating between conflicting identities, “Fatherland” carries all the beloved hallmarks of Pawlikowski’s previous masterpieces like “Cold War” and “Ida.” The film is an unglamorous, rigorous, and precise odyssey through the regrets of post-war Europe, yet at its heart, it houses a father-daughter narrative that deeply resonates with viewers.
Mubi will release “Fatherland” in US theaters this fall.
