The White Ribbon

Das Weisse Band (The White Ribbon) is a film about a small, Protestant, German town on the brink of WWI. Strange and cruel pranks start occurring within the community without explanation. A boy gets beaten till he is bloody, a wire is placed in order to trip a horse and rider, a barn is set on fire. Before I saw the film I knew that it was going to be very similar to Ingmar Bergman's work because of the striking imagery. I was completely blown away by the composition of each shot and the ominous, foreboding theme that remained present throughout the film. The black and white footage had the same visceral quality that old photographs contain; as though the souls of those being filmed remained in each moment. The White Ribbon alludes to the birth of German Fascism and the dangerous events that result.

-B