Michael

Year: 2011
Country: AUSTRIA
Run Time: 96 minutes

Michael is no one special. A single, introverted insurance worker, he blends into the crowd. He sees his family on occasion and even goes on vacation with friends. Yet, when Michael comes home at night and draws the curtains, he's never alone. An intensely disturbing portrayal of the day-to-day routine of a pedophile, MICHAEL draws you in until you feel as trapped as the ten-year-old boy he keeps locked away in his basement. Though it purposefully and successfully sets you on edge within the first few minutes, the film overall is a quiet, piercing artistic masterpiece consisting primarily of heavy, controlled still shots and a building sense of terrifying trepidation. Essentially it remains a difficult-to-watch detailed exposé on how Michael, played by the painfully convincing Austrian actor Michael Fuith, successfully keeps a kidnapped boy in his home for five months. Nevertheless, this observational thriller is certainly not without its own innovative sense of shock and suspense. (In German with subtitles) – M.M.

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