The Wall (Die Wand)

Mysterious and riveting, this contemporary female Robinson Crusoe tale is a highly original cinematic vision. Martina Gedeck, the brilliant interpreter of the Oscar-winning The Lives Of Others, brings a rare and vivid intensity to this exploration of solitude and survival set in a spectacularly beautiful Austrian mountain landscape. As the unnamed lead character, she inexplicably finds herself cut off from all human contact when an invisible, unyielding wall suddenly surrounds the countryside. Accompanied by her loyal dog Lynx, she becomes immersed in a world untouched by civilization and ruled by the laws of nature. As she grapples with her extraordinary circumstances, she begins an inward journey of spiritual growth and transcendence. Based on Marlen Haushofer's eponymous feminist classic novel, this film is a gorgeous existential meditation that raises profound questions about humanity and our relationship to the natural world.