In The Fade, 2017.
Directed by Fatih Akin.
Starring Diane Kruger, Denis Moschitto, Numan Acar, and Samir Muriel Chancrin.
SYNOPSIS:
Katja married her Turkish born husband, Nuri, while he was in prison for drug offences. On his release, he sets up his own business and turns his life around, helping the immigrant community. Life is good – until one day a bomb explodes outside his office, killing both him and their young son. But those responsible are acquitted at trial and Katja faces a choice: walk away or take matters into her own hands.
Sometimes a film will slip in – and then out – under the radar. It’s a fact of cinematic life, even if on demand is an option, and leaves anybody who’s lucky enough to see it wondering why on earth it isn’t getting a wider audience. It could easily happen to In The Fade, originally shown at Cannes last year and now arriving in the UK. And missing out on it would be nothing short of a crime.
In truth, it’s not a film for everybody but, if you can take the harrowing subject matter and relentless tension that will leave your heart racing for hours afterwards, then go for it. Because this is a superbly shattering experience, a searing account of the trauma that comes with losing loved ones in a terrorist attack. Katja’s (Diane Kruger) marriage to Turkish-born Nuri (Numan Acar) is good: he’s established himself in the community with his translation and taxation business and they have a little boy. But then a bomb explodes outside Nuri’s office, killing him and their son, leaving Katja devastated. She manages to help the police in tracking down the killers, but suffers another crushing blow when they are acquitted. With little or nothing left, does she take revenge or simply walk away?
Fatih Akin’s film is aimed very much as a commentary on attitudes to immigrants in Germany, underlining its message in its final moments with the shocking number of deaths resulting from bombings by domestic terrorists. And, even though the context and background aren’t exactly the same, there’s a resonance here for British audiences as well. The German justice system, while not a main target, doesn’t escape unscathed either: there’s no jury, just a panel of judges who preside over the fates of those accused of killing Nuri and Rocco. And it fails not just Katja but her much-missed husband and son.
Her grief is unbearable, both for her and for the audience, right from the moment she discovers the aftermath of the explosion. Questioned closely by the police and at her wits’ end when it appears nobody is going to be charged, her relief at learning the killers have been tracked down is tangible. But it’s also short-lived. In court, she hears the details of what happened to her little boy, brutally ripping away any comfort that went with being told at the time that he wouldn’t have suffered. At home, things are no better, with her in-laws wanting to take their son’s and grandson’s bodies back to Turkey and her mother constantly voicing the unwelcome opinion that Nuri must have been mixed up in something illegal. Mother and daughter have never been close and this turns the cracks into a chasm. The only person who seems to have Katja’s interests at heart is her lawyer and friend, Danilo (Denis Moschitto).
It all builds to a shattering climax, keeping you glued to your seat as you take in what’s happening right in front of your eyes. Not just in those final scenes, but for the entire taut hour and 45 minutes. Gruelling, uncompromising and exhausting, it’s also brilliantly honest and compassionate, sending your head spinning. Kruger, who won Best Actress at Cannes last year for this, is on career-best form, driving the story forwards with a heartfelt, flawless performance that breaks your heart. She’s well supported by Moschitto as her supportive lawyer, but part of the film’s strength lies in its ensemble scenes. The courtroom sequences are especially powerful, sharply contrasting the emotional response to events with the comparative coldness that goes with legal proceedings – and the inevitable response from somebody caught up in both.
The big film released in the UK this week is also female-driven. But while Ocean’s 8 may be getting all the attention, In The Fade is the one that deserves it, for its emotion, powerful social commentary and a stellar performance from Kruger. Sure, it delivers a mighty gut punch, but it’s also sensationally good.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Freda Cooper. Follow me on Twitter.
