"Beresina oder Die letzten Tage der Schweiz" is a Swiss German-language film from 1999, so this one will soon have its 20th anniversary. With late director Schmid and writer Suter in charge, this project unites 2 of Switzerland's most famous and successful filmmakers from the last decades. The lead actress is from Russia like her character and it may be one of Panova's most known career efforts and you probably did not expect Geraldine Chaplin to show up in here and not just for a few seconds. German film buffs will immediately recognize Ulrich Noethen and Stefan Kurt. Maybe these names are also a key reason why this film was chosen to represent at the Oscars back then, even without much awards attention. It did not manage a nomination though.
Despite all the political stuff in here, this is never a politics movie. It is also not much of a drama despite several dramatic issues being touched such as expulsion. These are always presented with an ounce of humor, frequently with very dark humor. I do think that the film had a couple solid moments here and there, but for over 100 minutes it simply wasn't enough. The absurdity may be the film's biggest strength and biggest weakness at the same time and if you have seen it you will know what I mean with that. It's never an actors' movie, but really all about the plot and subject and not about individual performances. As a consequence, this is also where the quality especially isn't enough. I would say the actors were better than the script. That doesn't mean it is a failure though. Not by any means. But maybe you really need to be Swiss to truly make a connection here. It's somewhat interesting how Switzerland is nowhere near Germany and Austria in terms of cinematic status, but also that some of the most known Swiss films are about Switzerlan. "Die Schweizermacher" would be another example. Okay, not gonna talk any more about other films now, this one here gets a thumbs-down from me overall and I do not recommend checking it out, even if it has some upside too. Go for something else instead.
Despite all the political stuff in here, this is never a politics movie. It is also not much of a drama despite several dramatic issues being touched such as expulsion. These are always presented with an ounce of humor, frequently with very dark humor. I do think that the film had a couple solid moments here and there, but for over 100 minutes it simply wasn't enough. The absurdity may be the film's biggest strength and biggest weakness at the same time and if you have seen it you will know what I mean with that. It's never an actors' movie, but really all about the plot and subject and not about individual performances. As a consequence, this is also where the quality especially isn't enough. I would say the actors were better than the script. That doesn't mean it is a failure though. Not by any means. But maybe you really need to be Swiss to truly make a connection here. It's somewhat interesting how Switzerland is nowhere near Germany and Austria in terms of cinematic status, but also that some of the most known Swiss films are about Switzerlan. "Die Schweizermacher" would be another example. Okay, not gonna talk any more about other films now, this one here gets a thumbs-down from me overall and I do not recommend checking it out, even if it has some upside too. Go for something else instead.