Seen at...
Paths
- Director: Chris Miera
- Writer: Chris Miera; Philipp Österle
- Producer: Chris Miera; Kordula Hildebrandt
CGiii Comment
A rare film, a mature film...from one so young!
It will resonate with a fair few...for those who are in [or who have been in] a long-term relationship and realised that through no fault of either party...it has ran its course! There's no love lost, there's still respect, there will always be a shared history...but, when the time has come, when clinging on becomes...obsolete.
There are two ways to accept this finality...thankfully, Mr Miera has chosen the graceful path...capturing that moment when a couple decide to separate before the rot sets in.
There's no melodrama, there just quiet reflectons of the happier times and the not-so happy times...of a shared existence.
At a certain age, it takes guts to walk away from stability, it takes guts to accept the inevitable. Sure, there are ways to avoid this inevitability...the post-modern 'open relationship' is always a 'workable' option...but, Martin and Andreas are old-school middle-agers. They know that these modern 'option's are not the answer. Too much respect for each other!
This is a gentle reconciliation on separation, there are a few tears...nothing tumultuous and that's the film's power...its dignity.
Younger men may learn from it, older men will reflect upon it...a rare, mature, beautiful film...from one so young and talented!
Well done Mr Miera.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
A kiss by the sea, a promise for life. Who goes to the Baltic coast in the autumn? Nobody except Martin and Andreas. They come here every year and, every year, their son Max is a bit taller, and their own faces a bit older. This time Martin is fed up. The weather’s unpleasant and he’d much rather have stayed at home. Andreas on the other hand tears off his clothes and jumps into the freezing sea. A worried Martin tries to stop him and, stumbling, gulps down the salty water. Back at their holiday home the mood is weighed down by their different expectations of how they should spend their holidays together. What do they have left after all these years? So many films about relationships end at the point when the couple have found each other.
For director Chris Miera however this is precisely the moment when the interesting stories begin. What is the force that causes two people out of billions to decide to spend so much of their lives together? And what makes couples decide to part after such a long time? These are the questions that Ein Weg (Paths) sensitively investigates.
Cast & Characters
Mike Hoffmann as Andreas;
Anna Katharina Schimrigk as Trainee;
Tom Bottcher as Max;
Peer Martiny as Gutsmann;
Nadine Heidenreich as Sophie;
Cai Cohrs as Max;
Mathis Reinhardt as Martin;
Christian Martin Schafer as Viktor;
Eva Horacek as Christa;
Yvonne Doring as Julia Engel