Saturday, October 30, 2021

Requiem (2006)

Requiem is a 2006 German film loosely based on the life of Anneliese Michel. from Wikipedia:
It stars Sandra Hüller as a woman with epilepsy, Michaela Klingler, believed by members of her church and herself to be possessed. The film steers clear of special effects or dramatic music and instead ... focuses on Michaela's struggle to lead a normal life, trapped in a limbo which could either represent demonic possession or mental illness, focusing on the latter.
This film takes great liberties with the subject matter and doesn't cover the ensuing trial at all.




Eye for Film has a positive review, as does The Guardian. Moria has a comparison between this film and The Exorcism of Emily Rose, which is based on the same case. Rotten Tomatoes has a consensus critics score of 86%.

13 comments:

  1. ...sounds like a complex life.

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  2. "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" sounds familiar, but I'm not sure whether I saw it or not.

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    1. I put that one off for years for some reason, but I did see it eventually.

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  3. What a terrible thing to have a biological issue like epilepsy and have some people believe you are possessed. I imagine that was probably true too often before people knew what caused you to have seizures. Interesting there have been 2 films based on this same case. Did you like it Nita?

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    1. Yes, I liked it. It is hard when something is based on a true story but changes so much of the story for the film. I'd prefer they adhere more closely to the event or just come up with their own story.

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  4. I remember seeing this on a tv show where the parents and the priest were convicted of killing her due to malnutrition. This is a very sad situation and epilepsy is still not fully understood.

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    1. The church has cracked down a lot on exorcisms. A _lot_.

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  5. I watched this film in German many years back. It was interesting, but the ending was a bit weak. Have a great day, Valerie

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    1. Some films don't seem to be able to maintain momentum through the end.

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  6. This sounds fascinating. I'm not familiar with either of the films but this intrigues me.

    Did you attend Cinevent in Columbus (here's the schedule) - http://www.cinevent.com/EventSchedule.html -- it looked like there might be films that would interest you.

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    1. That schedule does look good. We're a 9 hour drive from Columbus, though. I've never been there.

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  7. I so wish this was in English. Even English over German. It is my kind of movie for sure.

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    1. My husband has trouble with subtitles, but he doesn't like most of the horror...

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