reviews

THE TEACHERS’ LOUNGE (DAS LEHRERZIMMER)

Directed by Ilker Çatak
Starring Leonie Benesch, Michael Klammer, Rafael Stachoviak, Anne-Kathrin Gummich, Eva Löbau, and Leo Stettnisch

“What happens and is discussed in the teachers’ lounge stays in the teachers’ lounge”.

These words are instructed by one school faculty member to another that are foolishly not observed from the get-go. As a result, it is the teachers’ who will be taught a tough lesson how to better handle a sensitive situation they all completely mismanage in this tense German drama nominated for an Academy Award ® for Best International Film.

Ms. Nowak (Leonie Benesch) is relatively new to teaching and the school that employs her when she is made to sit-in on an interrogation conducted by some of her more experienced colleagues. There is allegedly a thief among the seventh-grade students after reports of money being stolen from staff. Carla (Ms. Nowak) is visibly uncomfortable with the unethical approach adopted by her peers to get a couple of her pupils to talk and by Dr. Böhm’s (the school principal) enforcement of the school’s hard line zero-tolerance policy. With her awareness and suspicions now heightened, Carla decides to address the matter and find the culprit her own way, leading to disastrous consequences.

THE TEACHERS' LOUNGE Poster

One of The Teachers’ Lounge greatest strengths is its inherent and immediate ability to be thought-provoking. Though it is abundantly clear to us as well as to Ms. Nowak that the manner in which this situation is addressed is far from being the best way to handle it, it also provokes viewers to ponder how they’d go about it differently and what they might do in Ms. Nowak’s shoes. This characteristic of the film is something that stays throughout its entire duration and left me feeling completely lost looking for tangible solutions as the problems multiply and situation escalates as rapidly as it does. Before we know it, we find ourselves in a pressure cooker, where every character, each word that is spoken and action that is made only increases the temperature and threatens to blow its lid at any given moment. It must be said that co-writer and director Ilker Çatak does a sublime job of spiralling this situation by keeping almost all scenes within school grounds, allowing viewers no breathing or thinking space, and adding a sense of urgency courtesy of its camerawork, editing, and score. Throughout, The Teachers’ Lounge sometimes reminded me of the 2012 Mads Mikkelsen Oscar-nominated ® stunner, The Hunt (Jagten), a film I awarded a rare 5-stars to, but to be fair to The Hunt, The Teachers’ Lounge is much less comprehensive in scope and depth than that magnificent film (please see it if you haven’t already!). 

Led by a strong performance from Leonie Benesch (TV Series Babylon Berlin), The Teachers’ Lounge is a must-see for those who appreciate compelling and thought-provoking dramatic thrillers. 

Rating: 4 out of 5.

The Teachers’ Lounge is showing in selected cinemas across Australia from April 25th.

Moviedoc thanks Madman for the invitation to the screening and for providing a screener link to watch and review this film.

Review by Leigh for Moviedoc

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LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL

Written and Directed by Cameron Cairnes and Colin Cairnes
Starring David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon, Ian Bliss, Fayssal Bazzi, Ingrid Torelli, and Rhys Auteri

It’s best to go into some things blind, but with Late Night with the Devil a little bit of prep is useful to truly appreciate the attention to detail that’s been poured into it.

Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) is trying to pull his late-night talk show Night Owls out of the gutter to compete with Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show. Jack has tried everything, from bringing his cancer-riddled wife on as a special guest to performing corny set pieces, in order to plump up the ratings. Everything has failed, but on Halloween ’77 with the help of a couple of special guests, including his good friend June (Laura Gordon), the perfect storm rolls in just in time for sweeps week – the all-important period where advertisers gauge viewership to determine which shows can draw a healthy enough audience to justify another season.

LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL Key Art


From the get-go, Jack’s goal is to break records and in doing so many boundaries are crossed as he proves that he is willing to do anything to beat-out Carson, irrespective of how physically disturbed he becomes by what he witnesses on set. 

Directors Colin and Cameron Cairnes create a wholistic view of how the night went down by adding in ‘archive’ footage taped during commercial breaks, which reveals how each person feels about what’s unravelling around them. The episode itself is filmed in colour but those from behind-the-scenes are in black and white and reminiscent to found footage films of the early 2000s. This makes viewers feel one-step ahead of the in-house audience but that’s not often the case, however. Another guest, Carmichael (Ian Bliss), plays the sceptic who is there to disprove any and all paranormal phenomena, which increases suspended disbelief. 

Jack’s desperation is at the forefront of the film. He spends his time on-and-off air salivating and considering what’s next. Time and time again his worst impulses get the better of him to the detriment of his guests and co-host. Split-second moments, mostly in behind-the-scenes footage, capture grave concern sandwiched between hysterical excitement as his ratings continue to grow. The character development is a highlight all around.

The Cairnes’ make the most of their film’s relatively low budget, creating great atmosphere by drawing their audience into this replication of a 70’s talk show, which serves as the film’s only set. Glitches in the footage, a nice grain filter on the film, and the dialogue so uncanny as to what one could expect from the time. The movie takes its reproduction very seriously, until the final act when the consequences of the night are revealed.

Late Night with the Devil delivers a horrific finale. However, for those such as myself who were hoping for a good scare throughout, I would advise they taper their expectations to instead enjoy the film’s mystery and confusion, which is more than enough to keep anyone uncomfortable and in a state of sustained suspense, but rarely drive the adrenalin upwards outside of that. 

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Late Night with the Devil is showing in cinemas across Australia from April 11th.

Moviedoc thanks Maslow Entertainment and Nixco for providing a screener link to watch and review this film.

Reviewed by Zak Wheeler for Moviedoc

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