Christiane F. is a raw, uncompromising, bleak portrait of the drug addiction epidemic around the early 1980s, based on true autobiographic events.
There is no glorification of drug use in this film and no moralism either, just matter-of-factly realism: getting to know the wrong kind of friends, curiously trying drugs, enjoying it, slipping into addiction without realizing it, and slowly sinking into a bottomless pit of dirty needles, painful longing for a shot, cold prostitution and balancing on the edge of life and death.
The cold turkey scene was impressively dismal, like the perfect anti-advertisement for heroin use. The performances were very good, almost giving the impression that you're not watching a movie but a documentary.
The scenes featuring a David Bowie concert in Berlin felt like a feverish dream of the early 1980s. Bowie was radiant and charismatic.
Christiane F. is the dreariest coming-of-age film I've ever seen. That doesn't sound like a recommendation, but this film definitely deserves praise. Be sure to watch the uncensored version for a complete impression.
There is no glorification of drug use in this film and no moralism either, just matter-of-factly realism: getting to know the wrong kind of friends, curiously trying drugs, enjoying it, slipping into addiction without realizing it, and slowly sinking into a bottomless pit of dirty needles, painful longing for a shot, cold prostitution and balancing on the edge of life and death.
The cold turkey scene was impressively dismal, like the perfect anti-advertisement for heroin use. The performances were very good, almost giving the impression that you're not watching a movie but a documentary.
The scenes featuring a David Bowie concert in Berlin felt like a feverish dream of the early 1980s. Bowie was radiant and charismatic.
Christiane F. is the dreariest coming-of-age film I've ever seen. That doesn't sound like a recommendation, but this film definitely deserves praise. Be sure to watch the uncensored version for a complete impression.