The white ribbon (2009)

Among Michael Haneke's films, The White Ribbon might not be the most interesting ones, but it is not a bad film either. The film, in stylish monochromes, tell the story of a village plagued by a series of eerie and repulsive events. Somebody places a ribbon on the doctor's gate so that he trips with his horse. A child is tortured. There is a mysterious fire. The voice-over of the films, an old man, tells about his youth. He does this in a very neutral, detached way. The voice belongs to one of the characters, a teacher. We follow the villagers for a few years from 1913 onwards. The families in the village are connected in many ways. The pastor, the teacher, the worker, the doctor all have clearly defined societal positions. It is a patriarchal society in which men rule over women. It is also a society in which adults seem to live in one world, and children another. The children are not yet assigned with these societal roles, but they are still very much their families' children. The relation between children and adults in the film is often antagonistic and anguished. Adults abuse, give orders, uphold order, make excuses, institute prohibitions - and do their best to uphold the appearance of "innocent children" - tightly connected with the appearance of "responsible grown-ups". A group of children roams around the village. We usually see them together in the group, or at home, with their family. Rarely alone in a non-family setting.

The film seems to ask the same question as the villagers themselves do: who are responsible for these crimes? Haneke's film resists a straightforward reply. By and by, I start questioning the question. Is it that one which is the most important issue? Or rather: isn't it rather that Haneke makes us look at flight from responsibility, collectivity and false innocence? To a great film, this is a film about guilt and what it means to attempt to find a guilty party.

The White Ribbon plods through a massive sea of information. Scenes change quickly and I often found myself wondering about some fact or other.