Review of Anatomy of a Fall: Outstanding filmmaking, a mind-bogglingly amazing Sandra Huller, and sensationally good writing
French writer-director Justin Triet explores a relationship that is festering and ends with a horrible impact in her fourth feature film, Anatomy Of A Fall. An powerful and captivating drama revolves around a suspected murder and a brutal legal struggle during the inquiry.
The film combines its two dimensions—it is both a marital drama and a legal thriller—to examine the inner workings of a home overrun by unsolved issues, including incompatibility, infidelity, jealousy, and gnawing hatred. This is made possible by the solid grasp that she and co-writer Arthur Harari create on the material.
Situated on a snow-covered mountain, the refurbished chalet serves as the setting for Anatomy of a Fall. It’s remote, frequently poorly lighted, and divided by staircases that lead to uncomfortable-feeling corners, abrupt tangents, and acute angles. The fact that it is a chilly place that is uneasy is made clear from the beginning.
A woman tries to talk to an interviewer over loud music blasting from the attic as the noise level below her makes it difficult for them to hear each other. The last thing that is possible in this situation is serenity. The music intensifies and the interview ends. This sets up well for the events that will take place over the course of the following two hours and more.
Anatomy of a Fall is a thriller that transcends all typical boundaries and becomes a gripping post-mortem of an unstable marriage thanks to sensationally good writing, an astoundingly amazing Sandra Huller, and top-notch filming.
At his lonely chalet near Grenoble, Samuel Maleski (Samuel Theis) falls to his death from the loft. Sandra Voyter (Huller), a successful German novelist, is his wife and the main suspect. The only ‘witness’ is their eleven-year-old sight challenged son Daniel (Milo Machado Graner).
After taking his guide dog Snoop (Cannes Palm Dog winner Messi) for a stroll, the child finds his father lifeless in a pool of blood beneath the window. His evidence is the key to solving the enigma surrounding an incident that the authorities are unable to write off as a suicide attempt or an accident.
Sandra faces an overwhelming amount of odds and gets charged. The prosecutor, Antoine Reinartz, is a relentless individual in the courtroom who is determined to incriminate Sandra. An old acquaintance of Sandra’s, Vincent Renzi (Swann Arlaud, brilliantly effortless), mounts a strong defense against a litany of witnesses who testify against his client.
Anatomy Of A Fall delves deeply into the contradicting realities and assumptions surrounding the intense psychological and emotional upheaval that the family has endured over time. Initially, it appears that both the cause and the result of Samuel’s death were the fissures. The wife and the preteen kid who must mature swiftly in the face of the uncomfortable change of events are the main subjects of the film.
If the two and a half hours of legal drama hadn’t been so deftly structured and paced, it could have been very tiresome. Triet exhibits extraordinary mastery over the pivotal revelations, akin to a great orchestra conductor in command of every note, rhythm, and resource. This movie about a tragedy ending a marriage is not off-balance for a second.
Only the physical collapse that culminates in an inquiry, an indictment, a trial, and relentless media coverage represents the pinnacle of a relationship in freefall. The deadly fall serves as a metaphor for how Sandra and Samuel’s marriage has fared since Daniel was permanently injured in a car accident.
Anatomy Of A Fall uses the intricate and drawn-out trial to raise important questions about a lady who controls everything around her and a guy who is plagued by feelings of failure, bitterness, guilt, and inadequacy in a totally nonjudgmental way. The spouse yells, “You are a monster,” during a furious fight the day before Samuel passes away. In addition, he calls her heartless. Sandra tells her son in a scene before the recording is shown in the courtroom to try and prove her guilt, saying she’s not the monster he’s been made to believe she is.
She tells the youngster who has been traumatized, “Your father was my soulmate.” We selected one another. How can we demonstrate that? Her statements amount to a dejected plea. They also sum up to an admission of guiltlessness. However, Sandra’s struggles become evident when no one is willing to give her a chance, least of all the police investigator and the prosecutor.
One of the main exhibits in the trial is an audio recording of Sandra and Samuel’s violent altercation. It also serves as the foundation for an investigation of the dangers of assuming reciprocity in a relationship involving two people with dissimilar temperaments and cultures. Sandra is German, while Samuel is French. Their language of communication is English.
The importance Anatomy Of A Fall places on the kid caught in the midst sets it apart from other legal dramas. His testimony will determine whether or not his mother survives. Is she to be penalized for being the kind of woman she is, driven and talent-driven, devoted to her profession and producing novels at a rate her husband, a former teacher turned writer who can’t finish his first book, probably envies?
During the trial, Zoe Solidor (Camille Rutherford), the student who interviews Sandra for her thesis in the movie’s opening scene, protests to the judge calling her “Ms. Solidor” in a brief exchange. She yells, “Do not reduce me to a marital status.” Though it is a throwaway remark, it is incredibly significant.
A quarreling marriage is scrutinized in Anatomy Of A Fall, but the film’s main goal goes beyond simply creating a complex legal thriller. It is equally focused on telling the tale of a woman who, in order to keep her marriage together, easily subjugates the guy she loves and doesn’t see any need to sacrifice her personal goals. Right up until the very last moment, the movie is full of surprises.
The Palme d’Or winner subtly changes the courtroom drama’s dimensions. It has been duly nominated for five Oscars. But it can demonstrate its value without any accolades. An absolute victory. Anatomy of a Fall belongs on the big screen, so don’t pass up the opportunity to see it there.
Cast:
Sandra Huller, Swann Arlaud, Samuel Theis, Antoine Reinartz, and Jenny Beth
Director:
Triet, Justine
