Direction: Matthias Glasner
Country: Germany
Matthias Glasner’s semi-autobiographical drama, Dying offers a grim portrayal of a fractured family grappling with illness, estrangement, and emotional baggage. The film, rigorous in its execution and often shocking in its emotional rawness, centers on a severely ill elderly couple (Corinna Harfouch and Hans-Uwe Bauer) before shifting its focus to their two adult children: Tom (Lars Eidinger), a proud conductor in Berlin, and Ellen (Lilith Stangenberg), a troubled dental assistant battling alcoholism, are both too consumed by their own lives and unresolved traumas to care for their dying parents.
Structured in five immersive chapters, the picture doesn’t have the advantage of brevity but is never boring. Carrying a great deal of coldness and pain, slightly eased by occasional black humor, the film strikes a jarring chord in family relationships, showcasing a tough reality where love cannot be felt or demonstrated.
Bathed in vitriol, Dying alternates excellent scenes with other less successful—where incautious manipulation exists—becoming the sort of drama that one admires more than one enjoys. It ultimately finds its tone, managing to keep the viewer in suspense and with a fascination for understanding the inner conflicts of these characters. Clearly influenced by Michael Haneke, Ruben Ostlund, and Ulrich Seidl, Glasner is committed to keeping every moment grounded in truth, resulting in a satisfactory payoff.
