NATHALIE –
ÜBERWINDUNG DER GRENZEN
Review by Diana Perry Schnelle
This fantastic satire lampoons the bureaucracy of the European Union and the way it functions ( or doesn ’ t ), zeroing in on the migrant crisis Europe has faced in recent years . What makes it so impressive is the way that director Lionel Baier blends together macro- and micro-level stories of crisis , embodying the idea that “ the personal is political .”
© W-FILM
NATHALIE – ÜBERWINDUNG DER GRENZEN
LA DÉRIVE DES CONTINENTS ( AU SUD ) CONTINENTAL DRIFT ( SOUTH )
SWITZERLAND | FRANCE 2022 OPENING MAY 30 , 2024
DIRECTED BY LIONEL BAIER
WRITING CREDITS : LIONEL BAIER , JULIEN BOUISSOUX , PAULINE GYGAX
PRINCIPAL ACTORS : ISABELLE CARRÉ , URSINA LARDI , THÉODORE PELLERIN
Nathalie Adler ( Isabelle Carré ) is working in Sicily as a European Commission liaison officer , connecting the refugee camps the EU finances and the top-level politicians who are coming to observe them . She ’ s helping organize an ostensible surprise visit that is actually being meticulously crafted . When the advance team from the offices of Chancellor Merkel and President Macron arrive , they cynically demand that Nathalie make the refugee camp look worse , so that their leaders will seem responsible for improvements when they return a few weeks later . German bureaucrat Ute ( Ursina Lardi ) is among those who arrive with Merkel ’ s team , and she turns out to be an old lover of Nathalie ’ s . While the women jostle to find new footing , Nathalie ’ s personal situation is further complicated by the unexpected arrival of her young adult son Albert ( Théodore Pellerin ), who is in Sicily volunteering for an NGO . Albert turned his back on his mother years ago when she came out as a lesbian and split from his father . As the opportunistic politicians bicker and jockey for advantage , playing up historical Franco- German competition for laughs , Nathalie and Albert attempt to overcome their old wounds . The film juxtaposes the absurdity of the politicians ’ demands with the absolute horror of the migrants ’ experiences , effectively mixing moments of thoughtful introspection and explosive anger . By telling personal stories of pain , the film highlights both universal and specific suffering , resulting in a bitingly dark but humorous farce — that leaves its protagonists poised to encounter yet another unexpected catastrophe . 89 minutes .
58 HAMBURG HAPPENINGS