Haneke's magnum opus

Rating: 10/10 (2 January 2011)

Michael Haneke's latest film, The White Ribbon, is a mesmerizing masterpiece that has kept me at the edge of my seat every time I have seen it. It is a puzzle of sorts that seems to have a different solution each time you look at it. Furthermore, encompassing everything from domestic violence to religion and politics, it is probably one of the most ambitious films of the 2000s so far.
Apart from the story, about a German village right before the First World War where some strange events take place, being absolutely fantastic, this is an astounding work from a technical point of view. The black and white cinematography is truly stunning – everything from the subtle camera work and shot composition to the lighting is among the best I have seen. The lack of music helps to build the atmosphere as well; sometimes, less really is more.
The White Ribbon is at times so tense and cruel that it is almost unbearable to watch. The narrator describes it better than I ever could when he says that he felt uneasy walking into a stranger's house. Supported by Haneke's magnificent direction, this is exactly what we get to do as well. However, even at its most painful moments, the film never wallows in misery, and much of the cruelty takes place off-screen (which in many ways is even more effective). Moreover, to balance the work further, there is a touching love story in the center and several genuinely sweet scenes involving children of the town.
By stating that the events in the film bear significance to later events in Germany, the film seems to suggest that it could help to explain the rise of fascism among other things. While I am not sure what to make of such a theory, it is easy to see how the parents' behavior in the film could lead to children being scarred for life.
Right from the start, Michael Haneke puts the viewer in a state of uncertainty by having the narrator tell us that he cannot be sure of the details in his story. Throughout the film, we are given information and details, but never to the point of certainty. Like an unsolvable riddle, there are plenty of possible solutions to what happens in The White Ribbon, but either way you look at the story, there is some anomaly that does not fit into the theory. Maybe the riddle is not meant to be solved at all, or maybe the solution is the very fact that there is not any answer that fits all of the crimes. Indeed, Haneke may very well be suggesting that there is never a single explanation for the kind of human cruelty that occurs in the film.