Lore

Most of us have seen many films about WW2. Most of what I've seen has been well-made and correctly shows the insanity of Hitler, the cruelty of the Nazis, the complacency or fear shown by German adults about challenging "the system" and the horror of the Holocaust. This one is different. Although it passes through all of the above, it asks a question for all of us: If you loved and trusted your parents (or any role model) and they embedded a certain point of view in your heart and head, how long would it take for you to even be open to another reality when you began to see contrary evidence in the outside world especially when your parents told you that you would encounter nothing but propaganda and lies? How long would it take? Especially if you grew up in a time when there was not much outside media and you were only 14 years old living in a society where everyone around you believed the same thing as your parents or were too afraid to even hint at anything different. As an American, this made me think about all the things we've done in the world during my lifetime that I accepted because, in my heart, I still believe after all is said and done, that we are the good guys. If we do something on the world stage that seems questionable, there must be a good and ethical reason for having done it.

The feel of the film is totally authentic, the acting as real as you can imagine, the photography and direction brings you very close to the characters and their feelings and it left me with lots on my mind: What should I believe? How would a Jewish person react to this film? What has been the mindset of an entire generation of Germans who grew up during this period? What should the rest of us learn about our deepest beliefs regarding other people?

This would be a great film for families or groups to watch, then discuss.

Bottom line for me, even if someone could find some flaw in the writing, acting, direction or filming, this film deserves the highest rating and is a "must see" for anyone who cares about people.

"Lore" (2012 co-production from Australia and Germany; 109 min.) brings the story of Lore, a teenage girl, and her 4 younger siblings. As the movie opens, seemingly far-away WWII is coming to a close (with the announcement that the Fuhrer is dead). We soon learn that Lore's parents are high up in the Nazi party and sure to be arrested by the Allies. Lore's mother implores Lore to take her siblings up north to Hamburg to where Omi is (Lore's grandmother). The problem is that Lore and her siblings are in the Black Forest (Southwest Germany) and that Hamburg is far, far away. With no money and no food, the siblings face a quasi-impossible task. Then at a certain point they make the acquaintance of Thomas, who appears to have escaped one of the concentration camps. Now a goup of six, they work their way further north. At this point we are not quite yet half-way into the movie but to tell you more would ruin your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Several comments: first and foremost, this is the bleakest movie that I have seen in a long, long time. Much of the movie confronts you with the fact that food was scarce and people will do just about anything to get some food. Just when you think that the situation of the siblings can't get worse, it does. Lore's youngest sibling is baby Peter, maybe 6 months old I'm guessing. You would expect baby Peter to be crying quite a bit under these circumstances, and that is exactly what we see on screen, no sugarcoating of any kind. Kudos to Saskia Rosendahl in the title role, she will simply blow you away with this performance. I must give a caveat about the way the movie is filmed and edited, with numerous extreme close-ups (of hands, faces, plants, anything really) and handheld camera shots.

Bottom line, though, is that this movie about an impossible journey makes for gripping and rewarding viewing. I had seen the previews of this several times and when this opened at my local art-house theatre here in Cincinnati, I went to see it right away as I figure this will no play very long, given the nature of the movie, but I could be wrong. In fact, the screening I saw this at today was reasonably well attended, although I did see an older couple walk out in the middle of the movie, I guess they couldn't take it anymore. If you are in the mood for a quality foreign movie that makes for at times difficult but ultimately rewarding viewing, do not miss this. "Lore" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Buy Lore Now

"Lore" is a captivating 2012 coming-of-age drama about a 15 year old girl who tries to shepherd her 4 younger siblings 500 kilometers across war-devastated Germany at the end of WW 2. The film was adapted from Rachel Seiffert's 2001 novel "The Dark Room".

The film is beautifully photographed by Australia born Adam Arkapaw who is best known in that country for films like "The Snowtown Murders" (2011), "Animal Kingdom" (2010), and "End of Town" (2006).

The child actors are marvelous, especially Saskia Rosendahl (as Lore) and Nele Trebs as her younger sister.

This is a German production with English subtitles.

Australia born writer/director Cate Shortland is best known for the award winning film "Somersault" (2004). She does a good job showing the trials and tribulations of the journey, especially the tension between the once proud elite and the realities of the new world, but her choice of shots keeps us at a distance from the participants.

"Lore" won awards at various smaller film festivals (Hamburg, Hamptons International, Hessian, Stockholm, Valladolid) and nominated for best film at others (London, Sydney). Hollywood News called it a "devastatingly stirring Germany-set drama" and said it was "unquestionably unforgettable". Variety said it "offers a fresh, intimate and most successful perspective on Germany's traumatic transition from conqueror nation to occupied state."

Bottom line – an unusual look at post WW2 Germany that is beautifully photographed and well-acted.

PS This film would get a 9 out of 10 if Amazon used a 10 point scale.

Read Best Reviews of Lore Here

Very well done film that centers around the sensitive topic of a child ("Lore", short for "Hannalore") coming of age in Germany at the end of the second world war who is bluntly confronted with the realization that she had been misled by much of what had been communicated to her regarding the war by parents and society during prior years. The performance by the actress who plays Lore, Saskia Rosendahl, is wonderful, especially toward the conclusion of the film when her character confronts her grandmother about this deceit, and is told that her parents did nothing wrong (her parents were National Socialists who were sent to camps by the Allies at the conclusion of the war). If you have a chance to watch the DVD, I strongly recommend that you take the time to watch the extras: "the making of Lore", "deleted scenes", "alternate ending", "memories of a German girl", and "panel discussion". Other reviewers here have indicated that they were confused throughout their viewing of this film, and I acknowledge that it is much easier understanding this film for individuals such as myself, a first generation American whose parents lived through the after effects of the war as children. The scene where the children encounter bombed-out buildings for the first time, and everyday scenes such as those involving mushroom hunting (there was no meat) are especially reminiscent of my mother, who grew up in an orphanage in what was to become East Germany. While I do admit that there were two scenes I did not understand, the deleted scenes extra on the DVD explains one of them. Perhaps others might find greater understanding by watching the extras as well. I agree with the director that using the "romantic" alternate ending for this film would have been a mistake, because the chosen ending brings some closure to the struggles that Lore experiences throughout the film. The question and answer panel discussion (which took place following a special screening of the film in February 2013, and includes the director of the Goethe-Institute Los Angeles and a contributing editor for the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles) is interesting and provides fair treatment, but it is not recorded very well, so you may need to view it more than once. While I have read quite a few books of this genre, such as "German Boy: A Child in War" by Wolfgang W. E. Samuel (see my review), this is the first book or film I have experienced which directly addresses such a dramatic shift in attitude as a result of being bombarded head-on by the truth. Well recommended.

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Set in the dying moments of World War 2 in Europe, we get to meet 15 year old Lore (Saskia Rosendahl, actually 19). Her father is a big wig Nazi and her mother is one of those German mothers who appears to have produced children purely to become Third Reich fodder, as she shows minimal interest in their welfare. As the Russians close in from the east and the Americans (who kill all children according to Mutti) close from the west, the father does a runner and then the mother decides to hand herself over to the Americans.

She leaves Lore some money and jewellery and tells he to go to her grandmothers, this is a 5,000 kilometre trek across war torn Germany, with a little sister, twin younger brothers and a seven month old baby. The last thing her mother tells her is `you must remember who you are', which on reflection is pretty lousy advice as it soon transpires that no one wants the kids of known Nazi's anywhere near them. It is also apparent that the nazification of Lore has been complete as she and most of the people she meets along the way are still ardent Hitler supporters, all deny the evidence of the Holocaust and the camps, and still are rampant antiSemites.

This is a complex but in many ways very honest look at a national psyche at a time of great turmoil and the contradictions and bewilderment that enforced change can bring. The acting is all excellent, there are some upsetting scenes, but all completely within context. The cinematography is brilliant, with all the shots framed and studied to award maximum effect to the storyline. This is not a war film in the sense of battles etc, but it is a film about the collateral damage that war has, both physically and mentally.

With a run time of 105 minutes this does actually fly by, it is in German and English with good sub titles. It was a co production of Austria, Germany and even Screen Australia. This is an intelligent film, it is not pretty and neither should it be based on the subject it deals with, but I found it both very watchable, believable and even moving in places, so can easily recommend.

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