At GreenCine Daily, Dave Hudson brings word that the German Film Awards, also known as the Lolas, just awarded three of the top prizes to Turkish-German filmmaker Fatih Akin's The Edge of Heaven. Akin has been recognized over the last decade for his explorations of the tensions between culture and religion, particularly as they pertain to German Turks. Edge of Heaven is no exception. A gorgeous survey of several interlocking tragedies, its deft structure puts Paul Haggis' Crash to shame. A German scholar struggles with his senile father's decision to bring a prostitute into their home. It gets complicated once the young man takes a liking to her. When sudden tragedy strikes, he sets out to find her next of kin for his own sense of closure. Smart without being too brooding, Edge of Heaven has a memorably epic scope. It's no wonder the Deutsche Filmakamie awarded Akin with Best Director and Screenplay awards, while Andrew Bird took home the Best Editing statue for his role in stitching the thing together. Akin isn't the most accessible foreign filmmaker, but his movies speak to international concerns that are rarely explored in American cinema, which gives his work a unique feeling of immediately. Akin has five other features worth your attention, but don't miss this one: Edge of Heaven opens in New York on May 21, followed by a national roll-out.
1. Saying that Fatih Akin "isn't the most accessible foreign filmmaker" is a mistake. His films are instantly human, engaging and has a magnificently dramatic narrative. They are strong works of art, but yet immensely entertaining and open for an audience.
Paul Thomas Anderson is an accessible American filmmaker to foreign audiences. Gus van Sant is less so. I'd say Akin is... akin to PTA.
Posted at 6:23PM on Apr 27th 2008 by Karsten