Totem

An Arepo Media, Klappboxfilme Krummacher Mueller, Schlicht und Ergreifend Film, Munich Film Society, U. of Television and Film Munich. (Worldwide sales: Arepo Media, Perfume.) Produced by Martin Blankemeyer, Jessica Krummacher, Philipp Budweg, Timo Mueller. Directed, put together by Jessica Krummacher.With: Marina Frenk, Natja Brunckhorst, Benno Ifland, Alissa Wilms, Cedric Koch, Fritz Fenne, Dominik Buch."There's you don't need to comprehend everything," states a personality in German drama "Totem," that's clearly the author's message from the willfully obscure, dreary arthouse effort. Helmer Jessica Krummacher should often be slashed slightly slack with all of this really is her film-school graduation project, as well as the pic's defects are people of youth: pretention, inadequate tech polish, as well as the failure to comprehend the primary distinction between needing to pay homage to -- and aping the form of -- an individual's idols (in Krummacher's situation, clearly Austrian helmers like Michael Haneke, Jessica Hausner, and Ulrich Seidl). "Totem" rarely is within worshiped beyond the fest circuit. Concerning the edges of Ruhr, housemaid Fiona (Marina Frenk) cleans up for your Bauer family, an oddball bunch made up of father Wolfgang (Benno Ifland), mother Claudia (Natja Brunckhorst), teen daughter Nicole (Alissa Wilms) and youthful boy Juergen (Cedric Koch). Gleam "baby," a real plastic toy, which Claudia for unknown reasons demands on pretending is real. We are not honest with each other or themselves, there's however little drama inside their psychodynamics. It doesn't assist the pic is poorly lensed on HD, turning evening moments into gray murk.Camera (color, HD), Bjorn Siepmann editor, Krummacher, Heike Parplies music, Marina Frenk costume designer, Anna Wuebber. Examined at Venice Film Festival (Critics' Week), Sept. 8, 2011. Running time: 89 MIN. Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com