Ferien (Vacation)

Thomas Arslan (2007)

Germany

Genre: Drama

It's summertime at a remote country house in the Uckermark nestling in the midst of protective woods. The inhabitants of this refuge far away from the rest of the world are Anna, her husband Robert and their son, Max. During the course of the summer, several generations of this sprawling family will come here. Laura, Anna's daughter from her first marriage, arrives from Berlin with her partner Paul and their children to spend their holidays here. Things get off to a promising start with a pleasant round of long walks, swimming in the nearby lake, and family meals in the garden. What looked like an idyllic sojourn is cut short when Anna's mother falls seriously ill and has to be brought to the house and cared for. Before long, the cracks in Paul's and Laura's relationship begin to become increasingly apparent. Even more confusion is caused by the appearance of Laura's sister Sophie, who lives abroad. All summer long, a group of people circumnavigate each other. A group of people who are so close and yet so alienated from one another. Their isolated holiday home is the site for a resurgence of smouldering conflicts and lifelong illusions that threaten to wreck the family's fragile unity forever.

(Source: 57. Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (Catalogue)

Family portrait; marital problems.  

Posted by Daniela Berghahn on 29 Apr 2008 •

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