In this moving and thought-provoking drama, the principal theme concerns the human emotion of guilt. The time is fall 1945. The setting is war-torn Berlin. The drama unfolds in a well-furnished apartment that has somehow escaped the bombs. Three characters locked in a room unfold their stories and their secrets. And the message is ultimately one about personal and collective guilt.
The central character is Christina (or Frieda), who worked as a prostitute for the Nazis in order to survive. A little girl was born, but subsequently disappeared. Christina/Frieda has not disclosed this information to her fiancé Billy, an American GI and war reporter, who has his secrets as well. Billy fulfilled a mission on the black market, but his action eventually came back to haunt him.
The fascinating character of the German inspector played by the fine actor Stephen Lang, who arrives to sort out the truth of what happened to Frieda's baby girl. It is as if the policeman stands for the conscience of a nation, and it will be Frieda's task to at least relieve the world of one lie. The most interesting dramatic symbol in the film is the mountain of watches observed by Billy at one of the death camps. At that moment, time appeared to stop. In one frame of the film, that image is beautiful recreated.
"Christina" is the rare film that is essentially a stage play that works effectively as a film with no attempt to adapt or "open up" the action. The three actors are terrific, particularly the actress playing Christina/Frieda. The understated performance hit all the right notes in a moving allegory about guilt.
At one point, Christina/Frieda recalls a line spoken by her mother, suggesting that "history is circle of blood and water." Three lives come before the bar in this moving drama. And the verdict of the imagined jury is: Schuldig!
The central character is Christina (or Frieda), who worked as a prostitute for the Nazis in order to survive. A little girl was born, but subsequently disappeared. Christina/Frieda has not disclosed this information to her fiancé Billy, an American GI and war reporter, who has his secrets as well. Billy fulfilled a mission on the black market, but his action eventually came back to haunt him.
The fascinating character of the German inspector played by the fine actor Stephen Lang, who arrives to sort out the truth of what happened to Frieda's baby girl. It is as if the policeman stands for the conscience of a nation, and it will be Frieda's task to at least relieve the world of one lie. The most interesting dramatic symbol in the film is the mountain of watches observed by Billy at one of the death camps. At that moment, time appeared to stop. In one frame of the film, that image is beautiful recreated.
"Christina" is the rare film that is essentially a stage play that works effectively as a film with no attempt to adapt or "open up" the action. The three actors are terrific, particularly the actress playing Christina/Frieda. The understated performance hit all the right notes in a moving allegory about guilt.
At one point, Christina/Frieda recalls a line spoken by her mother, suggesting that "history is circle of blood and water." Three lives come before the bar in this moving drama. And the verdict of the imagined jury is: Schuldig!