Antares (2004)
6/10
Very Austrian, occasionally very good
30 September 2015
Warning: Spoilers
"Antares" is not only a term from astronomy, it is also a Götz Spielmann movie from over 10 years ago. It rose a bit more to prominence lately again because Susanne Wuest plays one of the main characters and she also stars in the pretty popular recent Austrian horror film "Ich seh, Ich seh" by Ulrich Seidl. Anyway, Spielmann is known for this film here, but also for "Revanche", a 2008 drama movie that scored an Oscar nomination and turned Spielmann into one of the most important German-language movie makers if the 21st century.

"Antares" runs for almost 2 hours and is set in Austria as well. Almost all the actors are from this country and we watch stories about violence, lust, disappointment etc. The focus is really strong on love relationships as the lives of the protagonists are intertwined by (un)happy coincidence. I have to say I don't know any of the other actors, but I thought they all did a solid job, even if there were no real standouts and this description also fits the film as a whole. I never really felt for any of the characters, but maybe that's the idea that they have weaknesses and strengths and yet a truly unique personality and flaws. All in all, I would say that this is inferior to "Revanche", but it is still worth the watch. It is as bleak as most Austrian films these days, but this is by no means a negative characterization, just a description of style. A style that works. I recommend "Antares".
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