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In The Fade
***
Dir: Fatih Akin
Starring: Diane Kruger, Denis Moschitto
(Germany, 18, 1hr 46mins)
A compelling lead performance from Diane Kruger in her first film in her native German anchors this terrorism drama, which, whilst often compelling does veer into well-worn territory.
Kruger plays Katja, married to Turkish born ex-drug dealer Nuri, played by Numan Acar, with whom she has a six-year-old boy. They are a happy family, swiftly and deftly painted by director Akin, whose lives are ripped apart by a terrorist nail bomb. A neo-Nazi group has destroyed Nuri’s office, killing him and their son, whilst Katja is away enjoying herself at a spa.
Obviously devastated, Kruger is determined to get justice, but her journey is a harrowing one. She is plunged into the depths of despair – the prejudiced police, knowing that the dead husband was Turkish and an ex-dealer are suspicious of Kruger, whilst she also has to deal with both their respective families as they attribute blame.
This culminates in a deeply affecting scene, as Kruger attempts suicide in a bathtub, saving herself only when she hears that a pair of neo-Nazis have been arrested and charged with the terrorist offence. What follows is a bit of a rote courtroom drama, well played but with some stereotypical supporting characters less convincingly drawn by Akin.
Johannes Krisch’s defence lawyer is particularly effective, protecting his clients, a husband-and-wife neo-Nazi pair, played by Ulrich Freidrich Brandhoff and Hanna Hilsdorf. The re-emergence of the far right in Germany and pockets of growing neo-Nazism around the world add queasy relevance to the proceedings, but as the court case continues they are rather unconvincingly realized. Kruger is the anchor for the film however, portraying the anguish of loss and the desire for revenge well, showing the true cost of terrorism, despite the script’s tonal, ultimately unsatisfying shifts.
words Keiron Self