Die Unsichtbare

Maybe it’s her shyness, possibly it is something else, but drama student Fine seems invisible in groups. That is also what she is told by her mentor at drama school just before – to everyone’s surprise – she is given the demanding leading role of Camille in a play by the celebrity director Kaspar Friedmann, who is determined to work with students this time. ‘Friedmann was looking for a sheep rather than a wolf for the role’ is one of the many destructive remarks that Fine hears. And Friedmann does want to destroy her, break her down until she almost disappears and then build her up again so she can play Camille. In the meanwhile, the fairly vague boundary between Fine’s turbulent private life and her work on stage becomes even more vague à la Aronofsky’s Black Swan and Cassavetes’ Opening Night.
Just as in his debut November Child, Christian Schwochow shows that he can make young, talented actresses perform painfully probing and convincing roles.