LARA

Germany, 2019, 98 minutes, Colour.

Corinna Harfouch, Tom Schilling, Gudrun Ritter.

Directed by Jan Ole Gerster.

Lara is the dramatic portrait of a very strong woman on her 60^th birthday.

Lara is an arrogant woman, disdain for her former husband, clashing with her mother, a strained relationship with her son, a composer and pianist.

The action takes place on the day which will end with his concert performance, her getting remaining tickets and distributing them to associates, linking up with friends, meeting her former teacher and having a conversation with him, his revealing her talent but the limitations she imposed on herself.

She also visits her mother, finds her  son staying with her mother, listens to his composition, makes some criticisms which he takes seriously, deciding to change the program for his recital in the evening.

During the recital, Lara is overcome, leaves, meets up with her former professor for celebration afterwards, and his revealing more about her past and an analysis of her character.

Lara is a very uncomfortable person to watch but there is a great deal of insight in this dramatisation of a character and the interactions with the people in her life.

1. The portrait Lara, her 60^th birthday, as a character, as a woman, at her age, relationship with her mother, relationship with her son, his performance, her visit, the criticisms of husband, manager, former teacher?
2. A German drama, the German tone?
3. The introduction to Lara, audience response, waking, the open window, contemplating the fall, her attitudes towards people, angers, criticisms? Her going to work, civil servant, intimidating, her coworkers, their response to her?
4. Her son’s concert, going to the box office, buying the remaining tickets, at various times to distribute them, the friendly cab driver, the visit from her son’s girlfriend and her haughty reaction, work, associates, neighbours?
5. Lara and her day, discussion with her former husband, her son’s manager? Intruding backstage?
6. Her relationship with her mother, the visit, the animosity, the memories of the past? Her son living with her mother? The mother protective?
7. The interaction with the son, the tension with him, her control of him, years of supervision and practice, his concert, his composition, playing it, his asking advice, her harsh comment, not good enough, his taking note of it, omitting it from the performance?
8. The meeting with the professor, his not remembering her, gradually, the ticket, his being impressed with the performance, the discussion afterwards, remembering her, her talent, her interpretation of the comments, her misinterpreting his comment, falsely cutting short her career? Compensation with her son?
9. The son, the performance, her going outside, the acclaim, with the girlfriend, the celebration after the concert? The discussion with her teacher?
10. The audience spending the day with Lara, wary of her, dislike of her, her behaviour, control and manipulation, her learning the truth about herself, her son?