Stations of the Cross

New german film Stations of the Cross has sparked a torrent of thought-provoking analysis from critics and theological academics alike. Some see it as a meditation on the practices of God, others see it as an indictment of the perils of overbearing religious dogma, still others have focused on the personal narrative of dysfunctional family relationships. That so much ink has been spilt on this seemingly unassuming, low-budget film is testament to the gravitas of its content.
The film follows the story of seemingly ordinary 14-year-old Maria (played by a convincing Lea van Acken), on the cusp of religious confirmation in a small, rural town. However, her recognizably clichéd adolescent experience is framed in the chilling dogma of Catholic fundamentalism. Instilled with the disturbing belief that pleasure is some kind of spiritual deficiency, Maria must cope with feelings she has developed for a young teenage suitor. She is brow-beaten by a mother (played by Franziska Weisz) intent on seeing sin in everything, including the seemingly innocuous such as soul and jazz music, and her harsh upbringing is exacerbated by the severe indoctrinations of Father Weber (Florian Stetter).
Perhaps most unusual, though, are the cinematic techniques employed by writer Anna Bruggemann and her brother, director Dietrich Bruggemann. The film's title comes from the way it is chaptered: it follows the form of 'The Stations of the Cross' (the traditional representation of Christ’s crucifixion, evident in many a Catholic church’s stained-glass windows). Each chapter plays out on a static camera with no edit points, meaning that it reserves a tense atmosphere of live action throughout. Its somber tone and disturbing subject matter have earned it comparisons with 2006’s Requiem and, more recently, 2014’s Ida. However you choose to understand the intriguingly ambiguous nature of the film, Stations of the Cross is unlikely to disappoint its audiences.