I never want to see this film again. I cannot watch this film ever again. Instead, I want everyone else, including you and all your relatives and friends and every politician and their advisors to see it. It should be mandatory viewing in schools everywhere, in every country, especially for 12-15 year olds so they are welded to realising the utter useless ridiculousness of old men's war, what it causes to happen to children and what it makes young soldiers do. I saw it packaged as a short film fest at Sydney's Bondi Beach outdoor cinema one breathtaking summer night. We all walked in chatting and laughing and ready for Internation short film fest. Then, after two claymation funnies, came this film THE RED JACKET. The complete and utter collapse of 300 hearts was heard across the park, only to be followed by breathless silence and truly genuine tears of every emotion. I have no idea what films followed, I like everyone else there was absolutely shattered by this neat 20 minute dialogue free film that simply presented a storyline with bullseye precision. And then reaffirmed the generosity of the human spirit. Who made this film? (It is German) why are these geniuses not celebrated at Oscar time and promoted as the real international talent they clearly are. I do not want to see 'worthy' cinema, and I shudder at media superlatives and I am very aware of what I am writing here. I am raving about this perfect short film, what it delivers and what it has to say about a recent war in Europe. I do not want my heart broken in some fake or contrived cruel movie. This film is not that. This film delivered exactly what I suspected was real, but did it in such a way that I will never forget. If you have to ask a German film consulate to find it, do so. But I saw THE RED JACKET and you should too. This film is a genuine, succinct, perfectly realised cinema masterpiece. It has everything in it that I would avoid if I had any idea of what it contained. Find it, watch it yourself and then just hand it to others - but don't prepare them. Let me just finally say that if each generation of impressionable teens was shown this film, instead of Hollywood gun fun, we would finally generate the politicians of the future who would avoid warfare forever. I saw THE RED JACKET two years ago. It has taken me until now to write about it. Sounds ridiculous and over emotional but every word of what I have written is here should not put you off.
Review of Die rote Jacke
