nope

Rating: 6/10 (1 May 2018)

There are few filmmakers to whom I have as mixed feelings as I do towards Haneke. My favorite films of his- Amour, Code Unknown- I hold to be about as great as cinema gets. The Haneke films I hold in the least regard, such as the two Funny Games films and The Piano Teacher (the latter of which I know some people hold in very high regard), I think are ill conceived exercises in misanthropic sadism disguised, I think even to Haneke himself, as some kind of moralistic lesson to the audience.
This film, one of his most celebrated, for me falls into neither extreme camp- I just found it tiresome. Indeed, this is an example of a film that is well made on just about every level, that still manages to be unsatisfying. The craftsmanship here is of a very high level- the cinematography is great, the art direction flawless, the acting top-notch. Even the narrative is passably entertaining in a prosaic who-done-it kind of way (although the "surprise" ending is anything but). And yet, I felt I'd wasted three house watching it. Perhaps this is because the film's message seems to be: 1. Early 20th century German culture was hella Protestant. 2. Puritanical protestant culture is hypocritical and oppressive. 3. Therefor, the generation of children who grew up in such a milieu grew up to be Nazis.
Then again, such simplistic, yet "important" thematics go over well at film festivals and award ceremonies.