In Gotz Spielmann's Revanche (16 February), tragedy is clumsy, brutal, and blind to class and circumstance. The unrelenting pressure of post-traumatic stress permeates the film from beginning to end, with brief breaths of catharsis sprinkled throughout, but only sparingly so. The movie commands one's attention unlike most films of the last few years in any language. Criterion will release Spielmann's fifth film (the first to be distributed in the States) on Blu-ray and DVD this coming Tuesday, 16 February. The Blu looks stunning, as one would assume.
Johannes Krisch as Alex
Ex-felon Alex (Johannes Krisch) has fallen for one of the prostitutes at the brothel he works for, and he aims to "save" her by robbing a bank and taking her far away. The bank robbery goes wrong and rapidly unravels the worlds of two couples: Alex and Tamara as well as the responding policeman and his wife.
The progression from the city to the country sees the tension gradually diminish, but we are not left with any substantive sense of ease until the closing seconds of the film. Spielmann, his actors, and crew string us along beautifully, keeping the tragedy from overpowering our sympathetic attachment to the protagonists (all four of them) and the story. Revanche is one of the best films that far too many people missed last year.
The supplemental materials on the Criterion DVD & Blu may look minimal, but as usual, they are substantial in quality while being few in number. The video interview with director Spielmann is satisfying, and a thorough portrayal of who he is as an artist. He feels predominantly fascinated with absolute precision when it comes to portraying human nature behavior as authentically as is possible.
Further detail about the director's sensibility is revealed by his award-winning short film, Foreign Land, which features a recently-recorded introduction form Spielmann. Yet more fascinating is The Making of Revanche, a half-hour featurette shot on-set that allows us into the inner circle of Spielmann's work. It's one thing to hear someone talk about their craft, but another entirely to see it in practice. The US Trailer is included, as is a booklet with a very solid appreciation essay written by Armond White. Many hate him, but they would be wise to give the essay a shot, as it's really rather perfect. Amazon has the Blu-ray for $26.99 and the DVD for $29.99.
