For those of a sensitive disposition, I can confirm that, while forest fires play a key role in this film, it's not particularly frightening or gory. There are some spectacular shots of fire approaching, but not much among the flames. And if you are sensitive about depictions of sex, there's not much here to cause upset - you hear it but don't see it.
On the positive side, the plot ticks along nicely - you're never quite sure what will happen next to the two friends who rock up at a holiday home belonging to the mother of one of them, only to find she's forgotten to mention that a niece of a coworker will also be staying there. The central character, Leon, does a good job in depicting the loneliness that you can feel even when surrounded by other people - his friend Felix bonds with the other guest Nadja, and her boyfriend Devid, with things reaching a nadir when Leon's publisher visits and turns out to be far more interested in Nadja and Felix than in Leon's book. There's a particularly sad scene when Nadja, Felix and Devid play with illuminated frisbees at night while Leon lies on his bed looking out. The others try to be kind, but can't overcome his sense of rejection.
Another positive for me were the scenes of the forest, the beach, and the German seaside town - made me want to visit.
The main negatives were several big holes in the plausibility of the plot. First, the relationship between Nadja and Leon. Leon isn't repulsive, but he's not particularly attractive. That wouldn't matter if he had some wit or charm, sweetness or even artistic flair, but he seems sadly lacking in anything other than a misplaced sense that he is going to be a great novelist. Nadja, on the other hand is beautiful, clever and kind. It isn't surprising that Leon instantly falls for her, but it is implausible that she should reciprocate - particularly when her initial attempts to strike up a relationship are rebuffed. I didn't really feel that Leon's character developed, and his ultimate romantic success seemed due to the fact that everyone else had been killed off, rather than him becoming someone who had something positive to offer a woman in terms of empathy or emotional engagement.
Also, it turns out that the book he's writing is crap. Nadja tells him so - it clearly gives her no pleasure to do so, but she sees the need to be honest. And just in case the audience think she may have been overly judgmental, we are treated to an episode where the publisher visits and reads aloud quite long passages. This was pretty odd and as far as I could see, the only purpose of this episode was to demonstrate to the audience just how turgid Leon's prose was. I kept expecting the publisher to pause and provide a critique of a passage he'd read, but he just kept on and on. Why? Was he hoping that if he read Leon's words back to him, Leon would start to realise how tedious and plodding it was? Nevertheless, after further events, the publisher has a conversation in which he tells Leon to abandon this book, but passionately reassures him that his next book will be much much better. At this point in the story, there was no evidence that this was true, so I couldn't work out the motivation of the publisher - unless maybe he'd shelled out a large advance for the next book and was hoping something better might be possible. If I were a publisher, I'd run a mile from Leon.
Another creaking hole in the plot concerned the car that broke down at the start of the adventure and so was abandoned on the road. Why not stay put and flag down a passing vehicle? Or walk up the road to somewhere with a better mobile signal and call for help? Instead, the friends abandon the car but take their heavy cases with them on a trek through the forest to find the house. And when they go into town, they are told there is no garage that can help recover the car. Hmm.
Anyway, if you can suspend belief from time to time, this is a quite enjoyable study of young adult relationships, set in a picturesque region of Germany.
On the positive side, the plot ticks along nicely - you're never quite sure what will happen next to the two friends who rock up at a holiday home belonging to the mother of one of them, only to find she's forgotten to mention that a niece of a coworker will also be staying there. The central character, Leon, does a good job in depicting the loneliness that you can feel even when surrounded by other people - his friend Felix bonds with the other guest Nadja, and her boyfriend Devid, with things reaching a nadir when Leon's publisher visits and turns out to be far more interested in Nadja and Felix than in Leon's book. There's a particularly sad scene when Nadja, Felix and Devid play with illuminated frisbees at night while Leon lies on his bed looking out. The others try to be kind, but can't overcome his sense of rejection.
Another positive for me were the scenes of the forest, the beach, and the German seaside town - made me want to visit.
The main negatives were several big holes in the plausibility of the plot. First, the relationship between Nadja and Leon. Leon isn't repulsive, but he's not particularly attractive. That wouldn't matter if he had some wit or charm, sweetness or even artistic flair, but he seems sadly lacking in anything other than a misplaced sense that he is going to be a great novelist. Nadja, on the other hand is beautiful, clever and kind. It isn't surprising that Leon instantly falls for her, but it is implausible that she should reciprocate - particularly when her initial attempts to strike up a relationship are rebuffed. I didn't really feel that Leon's character developed, and his ultimate romantic success seemed due to the fact that everyone else had been killed off, rather than him becoming someone who had something positive to offer a woman in terms of empathy or emotional engagement.
Also, it turns out that the book he's writing is crap. Nadja tells him so - it clearly gives her no pleasure to do so, but she sees the need to be honest. And just in case the audience think she may have been overly judgmental, we are treated to an episode where the publisher visits and reads aloud quite long passages. This was pretty odd and as far as I could see, the only purpose of this episode was to demonstrate to the audience just how turgid Leon's prose was. I kept expecting the publisher to pause and provide a critique of a passage he'd read, but he just kept on and on. Why? Was he hoping that if he read Leon's words back to him, Leon would start to realise how tedious and plodding it was? Nevertheless, after further events, the publisher has a conversation in which he tells Leon to abandon this book, but passionately reassures him that his next book will be much much better. At this point in the story, there was no evidence that this was true, so I couldn't work out the motivation of the publisher - unless maybe he'd shelled out a large advance for the next book and was hoping something better might be possible. If I were a publisher, I'd run a mile from Leon.
Another creaking hole in the plot concerned the car that broke down at the start of the adventure and so was abandoned on the road. Why not stay put and flag down a passing vehicle? Or walk up the road to somewhere with a better mobile signal and call for help? Instead, the friends abandon the car but take their heavy cases with them on a trek through the forest to find the house. And when they go into town, they are told there is no garage that can help recover the car. Hmm.
Anyway, if you can suspend belief from time to time, this is a quite enjoyable study of young adult relationships, set in a picturesque region of Germany.