"Die Stille nach dem Schuß" or "The Legend of Rita" is a German movie from 2000, so this one will soon have its 20th anniversary. It is among the more recent works by "Oscar-winning" German filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff, who directed this one and also wrote the script together with somewhat legendary screenplay writer Wolfgang Kohlhaase. The film runs for 100 minutes roughly and tells an entirely fictitious story about former West German terrorist and how she lives under an alias in the GDR. The upcoming reunification may have made things easier for most, but not for her. I personally really wanted to like this movie here, but it was very difficult to end up appreciating. The problem is not that it is a bleak one, but that lead actress Bibiana Beglau was extremely underwhelming in her most known character performance. I would almost call her miscast. She was not only way too young for the role, but also she added almost nothing in terms of face expressions and range to a character that offered so so much and could have turned out so memorable if it had been portrayed by a superior actress. No idea why the Berlin Film Festival and also the European Film Awards gave her some recognition. The still pretty young Nadja Uhl was better for sure, but also not nomination or even awards worthy. The best performance probably still came from Martin Wuttke here who gave a commanding performance in the few couple scenes he was on. The script is not a revelation either, but making a fiction film about the days of RAF Germany (or the years after) is something we don't see too often and Schlöndorff's and Kohlhaase's experience certainly shows in terms of subtle moments, but also the showy ending for example. I just really wish they could have cast another lead actress here as Beglau does not have what it needs to carry this film from start to finish as she is in basically every single scene. A negative deal-breaker for me. Not recommended.
Review of The Legend of Rita
