In the Fade(Faith Akin,2017): Germany | France

Reviewed by Xudong Li. Viewed at AFI Fest 2017.

In the fade, a German language movie starring Diana Kruger is a well-constructed revenge drama. The superb first quarter of the movie plot comprising racial and religious tension which brings anger and grief to the story. The movie is directed, written and produced by a Turks living in Germany (Akin). The script and dialog of the character are well written and performed and its worthy 106 min. It was selected at 90^th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Movie from German entry and in 2017 Cannes Film festival to compete for the Palme d’Or.

The movie is the story of a girl Katja who married Nuri a Kurdish who served five years jail sentence in drug deal case. However, after the birth of Rocco, Nuri quit drug trafficking and studied business administration while in the jail and started working at the tax office. The turning point of the movie is when Katja left her son with Nuri in his office and went to take a spa while returning she saw lines of police car standing in front of her husband office. The bomb blast had turned apart the office building, and remains of bodies were laying in the scene. Rocco and Nuri were murdered in the office by neo-Nazi. Diana (Katja) act is natural and raw which drives forward the rest of the film.

The suspect of murder goes toward Nuri’s underworld connection however Katja is sure Neo-Nazis are involved in it. Nuri has been working in the new office since his return from jail and was clean from any drug related activities. Out of nowhere the news of Neo-Nazis, the arrest came which Akin lay down on the movie very casually (Young). The Neo-Nazis supporter couples are arrested, and the trial begins. Denis Moschitto has performed well, and Katja’s lawyer and the fact that Katja is co-plaintiff and trial witness renders her weak to the opposition tricks.

The movie is well directed, and the technical team has done a great job in bringing the action to life. The movie focuses on the thin line between good and evil, and Katja is sound like a lead character. The movie is intelligent in raising the social, political issues without giving audiences concrete answers. The contemporary life of Germany is shown well but is focused on the morals of revenge, and the movie perfectly shifts from grief outlook to courtroom drama. In the Fade certainly reflects our current situations, as most Islamic terrorists are blamed without double checking while specific groups continue to rise. The movie shows that it is often hard to find the answers to uncomfortable truths.