Mercy

Mercy

2012 ""
Mercy
Mercy

Mercy

6.7 | 2h12m | en | Thriller

A German couple, Niels and Maria, and their teenage son Markus move to the Norwegian coastal town of Hammerfest, hoping for a new beginning in the land of endless twilight. Instead they find themselves drifting further apart. Niels submerges himself in his work as an engineer and an affair with a co-worker, Maria works overtime and Markus struggles at school. One night, after a double shift, Maria’s car collides with something – or someone – on the road. But from tragedy comes mercy: the accident catalysing all three family members towards reconciliation.

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6.7 | 2h12m | en | Thriller | More Info
Released: October. 18,2012 | Released Producted By: Ophir Film , Schwarzweiss Filmproduktion Country: Budget: 0 Revenue: 0 Official Website:
Synopsis

A German couple, Niels and Maria, and their teenage son Markus move to the Norwegian coastal town of Hammerfest, hoping for a new beginning in the land of endless twilight. Instead they find themselves drifting further apart. Niels submerges himself in his work as an engineer and an affair with a co-worker, Maria works overtime and Markus struggles at school. One night, after a double shift, Maria’s car collides with something – or someone – on the road. But from tragedy comes mercy: the accident catalysing all three family members towards reconciliation.

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Cast

Birgit Minichmayr , Jürgen Vogel , Ane Dahl Torp

Director

Claus Rudolf Amler

Producted By

Ophir Film , Schwarzweiss Filmproduktion

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Reviews

Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) "Gnade" or "mercy" is a German movie from 3 years ago and the main characters are played by Birgit Minichmayr and Jürgen Vogel. Director Matthias Glasner and Vogel have worked on several projects in the past already, such as "Der freie Wille", in which Vogel's character is the one committing the crime. Here it is Minichmayr's character. And that movie is also very long, even longer than their collaboration here which still almost reaches the 135-minute mark. The screenplay comes from Kim Fupz Aakeson and was translated by Ulla Bay Kronenberger, who also worked on "The Door" for example. The consequence of Aakeson's involvement is that the is not only a Norwegian co-production, but includes a cast and crew that comes from Norway for the most part.The story is about a couple with a son and their marriage is really struggling. They left Germany for Norway and have (or have not) adapted to the lifestyle there in their very own ways. The woman is liked by her colleague and sacrifices her free time for overtime at the job, while her husband defines his way of integration by having an affair with a Norwegian woman. A tragic car accident changes everything for the two and actually lets them bond again and grow closer again. This film received a fair share of awards recognition, especially for lead actress and for the stunning cinematography in the Norwegian winter.I personally really liked Minichmayr and Vogel in here. I have not been too big on other Minichmayr performances, but she did win me over here somehow. A very authentic portrayal. The whole film is slow-moving and bleak, which is certainly not for everybody. But it is for me. Unfortunately, I cannot say I liked the ending too much. In my opinion, their choice of confessing the accident to the girls' parents wasn't a logical or reasonable development I expected. And honestly, the shots at the very end, after that confession had a fairly pretentious note to them and left a sour aftertaste after all the really good execution from the over 90 minutes hours before. I will agree that you could probably cut a couple less significant scenes and keep this film at 105 minutes, but it's also fine the way it actually turned out. It's not really dragging too much. As a whole, I enjoyed the watch and I recommend it.
OJT Mercy (Gnade in German, Nåde in Norwegian) is a German/Norwegian co-production about a German family of three living and working in one of the Northern-most cities in the world, Hammerfest. Dad is working in a large gas facility, mom as a nurse. We start following them during the harsh winter time, and they have serious trouble with their Marriage. He is struggling with the dark days during mid winter, and is having an affair, and she works more overtime than she wants to, when suddenly an accident occurs.Sometimes a film's scenery and location is the main component of a film, and so it is in this. The beautiful, but dark and cold scenery plays a role in making afterthought, and makes the film as a whole go up in a greater unity. The film is like a woven quilt dealing with remorse, anger, love and relations but above all reactions to difficult situations, forgiveness and reconciliation - and of course mercy.The film is strong, filmed in beautiful scenery, during the polar nights, when day lights are missing. The light is really something special, and it's used for all what it's worth. Which is quite a big deal. I think the film will be loved by many due to this. Class acting all the way.The film is very atmospheric, suitably slow paced, long, and has a nerve which lies beneath, making this an exciting film, which gives an experience on several levels. The relations, the secret, dignity, the harsh but beautiful nature, and it's also very artistic and a pleasant watch. The film ends in a very special way, adding to the film's strength.I enjoyed the film very much. I tend to like films where the the winter is playing a big part of the story, like in this. If you liked this, you'll also like "Vinterkyss" ("Kissed by winter"), which is thematically very like this one, and equally good. Other great winter films I will recommend is Transsiberian, Nord, Nordwand, The Big White and Fargo.
Sindre Kaspersen German screenwriter, producer and director Matthias Glasner's seventh feature film which he co-produced and which was written by Danish screenwriter Kim Fupz Aakeson, premiered In competition at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival in 2012, was shot on location in Hammerfest, Norway and is a Germany-Norway co-production which was produced by German producer Andreas Born and Norwegian producer Kristine Knudsen. It tells the story about a married couple named Niels and Maria who has emigrated with their son named Markus from Kiel, Germany to Hammerfest, Norway where they have bought a farm by the coast and Niels has gotten a job at a gas plant, Maria as a nurse at a hospital and Markus has begun at a new school. Whilst they are all in the process of learning the Norwegian language, Niels and Maria works on their marriage and Markus befriends a boy in his class, but one night when Maria is on her way home from the hospital she hits someone with her car.Distinctly and subtly directed by European filmmaker Matthias Glasner who made a lasting impression with his fifth feature film "The Free Will" (2006) six years ago, this quietly paced fictional tale which is narrated from multiple viewpoints, draws a tangible and engaging portrayal of a German man who has become friendly with a colleague named Linda, his spouse who sings in the local choir and listens attentively to her pregnant boss named Wenche and how their relationship suddenly bursts to life after they decide to keep a severe secret to themselves. While notable for its naturalistic and atmospheric milieu depictions, sterling cinematography by Polish-German cinematographer Jacub Bejnarowich, production design by production designer Claus-Rudolf Amler and use of light, this character-driven and narrative-driven story where the prominent Arctic surroundings is a character in itself which effects the main characters and where the heart of the story revolves around a 16-year-old girl named Mette, depicts several incisive studies of character and contains a great score by Homesweethome.This conversational, modestly romantic, at times humorous, psychological and internal character piece which is set during a winter in a somewhat isolated community inhabited by considerate people in Northern Norway where a son gets himself into a similar situation as his parents at school and his mother has a consequential encounter with the Northern Light, is impelled and reinforced by its cogent narrative structure, substantial character development, subtle continuity, use of music, moral meaningfulness, mysterious undertones, graceful and humane aura and the reverent and involving acting performances by German actor Jürgen Vogel, German actress Birgit Minichmayr, Norwegian actress Ane Dahl Torp, Norwegian actress and singer Iren Reppen and Norwegian actor Stig Henrik Hoff. An acutely reflective, sociological and virtuous drama and a long sought after and appreciated representation of Northern Norway which is not too often depicted in contemporary cinema.
JvH48 I saw this film at the Berlinale film festival 2012, where it was part of the official Competition section. In the midwinter season with a continuous (night and day) 100% darkness in Hammerfest, a women runs over someone or something when driving home. Rather than leaving her car and going back to see whether someone needs help, she panics. At home she tells her husband, who returns to the spot in question to investigate. He finds no trace of what could have hit the car.It is not until the next day that they hear about a young girl who died due to a hit and run incident at the very same place, but no evidence was found to trace back who caused her fatal injury. From that moment on, events take their inevitable course and each subsequent step makes it more difficult to come forward. Moreover, a confession does not bring the girl back to life.This is where my synopsis stops. I want to prevent wasting an ingeniously constructed script, where all ingredients have their proper place. A handful of human elements and sub-plots are thrown in, though not making it overly complex to follow. An example of a human element is that we observe the woman when at work in a hospital, while terminally ill patients are taken care of. A smaller sub-plot is that we see the husband at work in a "gas factory", where he has a love affair with a colleague.A more important sub-plot (in light of the title) is that the son takes part in pestering an alleged gay schoolmate. It causes the latter to drop school prematurely. The son regrets his part in the bullying, and he visits the victim at home, in search for some form of "mercy". The confrontation does not work out as he would have wanted, however.Is it a drama or a thriller?? Or both?? On one hand it is a drama, because everyone tries to find the best way to cope with the situation, not necessarily the human or moral best thing to do, yet they struggle to find a way out. On the other hand it is also a thriller, because throughout the full 2 hours and 10 minutes you want to know what will happen next.The whole story spans from midwinter (100% darkness, night and day) to midsummer (the reverse), all of that located in Hammerfest, offering a colorful but harsh landscape. We knew of its existence but we never had the chance to see it with our own eyes. It forms a perfect location for the drama that we see developing. And there is the even-so perfect combination of human elements, a few sub-plots and a wonderful collection of actors. Finally, I sincerely hope that above text does not give away too much about the thriller elements, since the built-in surprises were also very important for my appreciation of this movie.