A man builds a fortress with boys in rural Romania. What could possibly go wrong? EVERYTHING.
Ewald moved to Romania years ago. Now in his 40s, he seeks a fresh start. Leaving his girlfriend, he moves to the hinterland. With young boys from the area, he transforms a decaying school into a fortress. The children enjoy a new, carefree existence. But the distrust of the villagers is soon awoken. And Ewald is forced to confront a truth he has long suppressed.
Direction
Seidl's static tableaux make your skin crawl deliberately.
Acting
Georg Friedrich's hollow charm masks rot perfectly.
Director
Ulrich Seidl
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Seidl shot this back-to-back with 'Rimini' as a diptych about aging Austrian men escaping to paradise—both films interrogate the colonial gaze of Europeans 'finding themselves' in poorer countries.
The real Romanian location was an actual abandoned school; Seidl cast local non-actors, some of whose parents didn't fully understand the film's implications until after screening.
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