agmtw logo
search
Phoenix (2015)

7.9

Movie

France, Germany
English, German
Drama
2015
CHRISTIAN PETZOLD
Claudia Geisler, Claudia Geisler-Bading, Daniela Holtz
99 min

What it's about

German-Jewish cabaret singer Nelly survived Auschwitz but had to undergo reconstructive surgery as her face was disfigured. Without recognizing Nelly, her former husband Johnny asks her to help him claim his wife’s inheritance. To see if he betrayed her, she agrees, becoming her own doppelganger.

The take

Nelly is a concentration camp survivor who undergoes reconstructive facial surgery, and comes back to question whether her husband (unable to recognize her) was the one who betrayed her to the Nazis. Heavy, heavy stuff. But in Phoenix you will also see something else, as the story takes you beyond the subject matter to become almost a celebration of film: elements of Hitchcockian cinema intertwine with the realism of the likes of David Ayer are added to perfect performances to create a stunning, compelling, and exceptional film.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

Victoria (2015)

Filmed in one continuous take and in real time on the streets of Berlin, ‘Victoria’ immerses the viewer in a heart-stopping drama

9.8

Head-On (Gegen die Wand) (2004)

This raw, punk drama about a star-crossed love in modern Germany is as timely now as it was when it came out

9.3

The Lives of Others (2006)

The 2006 winner of seven German Film Awards wowed viewers worldwide with an authentic look at East Germany's sinister secret police Stasi

6.9

All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)

A stunning and sobering World War I drama from Germany

8.7

Au Revoir les Enfants (1987)

Louis Malle remembers his heartbreaking childhood in this poignant period drama

8.5

Full Time (2021)

A gripping thriller about the Herculean task that is keeping a job

8.7

Sixty Minutes (2024)

A brisk and stylish German action thriller that keeps things short and to the point

7.0

The Piano Teacher (2001)

An unnerving Austrian psychosexual drama from the meticulous auteur Michael Haneke

8.6

Run Lola Run (1998)

8.1

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.