Director Hans-Christian Schmid helms this award winning account of a first-year university student whose bout with epilepsy leads to a tragic exorcism. Inspired by the same events that were previously dramatized in The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Requiem follows college freshman and devoted Catholic Michaela Klinger (Sandra Hueller) as she attempts to adjust to dormitory life while struggling to meet the growing pressures and academic expectations of school. Though a tentative friendship with
temperamental classmate Hanna (Anna Blomeier) and a blossoming romance with easygoing chemistry student Stefan (Nicholas Reinke) at first find the shy student developing a pair of healthy bonds, an ill-advised abandonment of her medication regimen sets into motion a chilling series of events. Warned by a series of apparitions and disembodied voices that she should stay away from rosaries and crucifixes, Michaela seeks out the help of both her parents and amiable priest Father Landauer (Walter Schmidinger) to no avail. When Michaela becomes convinced that she is being made to suffer in the same manner of a well-known saint, well-intending pastor Borchert (Jens Harzer) hastily assembles an in-home exorcism that is doomed to end in tragedy. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Working from an economical and intelligent script by Bernd Lange , Schmid directs his first feature with the easy conviction that eluded the makers of the preposterous Emily Rose.
The nonsensationalistic results are also somewhat ho-hum -- and oddly less convincing than Friedkin's lurid mess, let alone the elegant satanism sagas of Tourneur and Polanski.
an intense, disturbing and bleak drama of ecstasy and insanity, all set in a world where, if there is a God at all, it truly requires a leap of faith into the dark to grasp Him.
Even though the film's run time is barely 89 minutes, be warned -- should you seek this miserable mind numbing bore-a-thon out, those minutes will feel like an eternity.
Sandra Hueller leads a fine cast and gives a textured performance as wallflower Michaela who is suddenly freed when she goes out into the world, only to be done in by her inner, psychosis-driven demons.
A tragic tale of teen rebellion and misplaced faith, this is a sober and sobering account of a young girl's untimely end, made enthralling by great performances and restrained direction.
[Huller] combines the raw physicality of Michaela's seizures with an emotional confusion as she ponders the cause of her attacks and how to react to them.
The movie ends a little too abruptly, but it features a heartrending performance from Sandra Huller that brought her the best actress award at this year's Berlin Film Festival.
What cannot be debated is the strength of Huller's naturalistic lead performance, a frighteninglyn intense turn that brings to mind Emily Watson's work in Breaking the Waves.
Based on the same story as The Exorcism of Emily Rose, this is a far more accurate and ultimately much more frightening version of events, with an award-winning performance from Huller.
a tragic clash of science and superstition inspired by the case of a mentally ill and very religious german girl who died under exorcism in the 70s. the film is understated and plays almost like a documentary
November 20, 2009
Stella Dallas
Super Reviewer
Don't see this expecting something in the vein of The Exorcist. There aren't any spinning heads or projectile vomiting and no sign of the demon Pazuzu here. Instead, Requiem is a non-sensationalized, non-judgmental look at what happens when mental illness clashes with religion. Based on the same case that inspired
The Exorcism of Emily Rose, but the two films are different. Emily Rose focused primarily on a lawyer involved in a court case involving the Priest who performed the exorcism, while Requiem focuses on the woman and is a drama about what can lead someone to believe they are possessed.The topic of exorcism may be easy "go to" material for horror films, but Requiem is not a horror film and the director doesn't decide for us whether or not she is possessed, but instead lets us draw our own conclusions. Lead actress Sandra Huller is really great throughout the film and the handheld camerawork is a nice touch in making the viewer feel as if they are in the room alongside her family.
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