percyporcelain Review of Stations of the Cross

Stations of the Cross (2014)

Terrific, terrifying study of German Catholic conservatism

[8/10 · 23 April 2018]

Many will avoid this film for religious reasons, which would be a shame, because in the end it is not so much about religion (in this case, conservative Catholics in Germany) as childhood, innocence and idealism, and the psychopathology of mental cruelty. Maria is a devout Catholic awaiting confirmation and like many young adolescents, deeply idealistic and principled. This would be fine but she has a cruel, controlling mother (whose motivation is shockingly revealed at the end), and the combination is deadly. It is engrossing and heartbreaking and not completely implausible. One wonders whether the director is being autobiographical but it will be a revelation to many that Catholic orthodoxy of this kind still prevails in parts of rural Germany. The film's other triumph is that it never judges, only observes, so there is nothing to offend a conservative Catholic here. That won't stop anti-Christian elements seeing the film as a denunication of religion, of course.