The Wall (2012)

Julian Roman Polsler's The Wall (Austria, 2012) - You don’t see many films that so overtly address the Human Condition – with capital letters – as intense, contemplative Alpine drama The Wall (Die Wand), essentially a one-woman turn by German star Martina Gedeck. But, if you can buy the bizarre metaphorical premise that gets the film going, then Julian Roman Pölsler’s spectacularly-shot, highly intelligent adaptation of Marlen Haushofer’s early 1960s bestseller is riveting and emotionally involving from start to finish, though offering few conventional narrative pleasures. 2012BERp, 2013PALM. RATING: 7