Transit (Christian Petzold, 2018) Germany | France

Reviewed by Kaio Farkouh.

In one of the best films of the year so far, the director Christian Petzold (“Phoenix”, 2014) the movie premiered last year at the Berlin film festival in competition for the golden bear. Over one year later, the movie finally released in the US, my advice; make sure to watch it.

“Transit” follows the story of Georg (Franz Rogowski), that after a Nazi invasion he decides to leave his country go to France. In the way he meets a guy, a writer that he was supposed to help make him meet his wife, that is waiting for him in France. However, the guy passed away and Georg impersonates the writer, so he can follow his will to leave Europe.

The movie is such a great achievement in many ways, it starts with a tense sequence just two guys talking and then running away from the Nazis, and since then the movie uses an approach where there is a narrator of the story, that never makes us feel like we are not capable of understand what is happening, but he gives us more informations and feelings about the characters. The movie barely has a score, it never induces you to feel something about the characters that we are watching. The director wants us to feel the emotions and feelings by ourselves, and it is beautiful and also sad to see reactions of love, sadness, self doubt, loss, and almost never be induced by something. We feel the characters because of that and it feels much more real.

Georg, a lonely but interesting main character. You can see how good he is, but how lonely he is. Even though he cares about the others, you can always see him walking, smoking, drinking by himself. There is a deep sadness in our main character that is trying to get away of all of this madness that is happening in Europe and g away.

“Transit” felt almost like poetry, with good character and questions that come when you have people around that you care and how you deal with them without hurting them. It is such a beautiful film, that never induces you to feel something, rather make you decide and truly feel by yourself what is happening in this sad love story. One of best films of the year.

“Transit” trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R15ekRCq-eY