The best film I saw this year, and also my altime favourite is ‘Shultze gets the blues.’, a film by Michael Schorr.
It’s the only movie this year that gave me the blues, it jerked my tears. I was full of pity and joy…
trailers
story:
“Schultze gets the blues” tells the story of Schultze. Schultze has spent his whole life in a small town in Saxon-Anhalt near the river Saale. Schultze’s life, divided between work and the pub, the allotment, folk music and fishing, is rudely interrupted when he and his mates Manfred and Jürgen are made redundant. As entropy sets in and maintaining the daily routine deteriorates into a farce, Schultze discovers a life on the other side of the hill.
From his polka-powered accordeon the amateur musician coaxes the fiery zydeco music of the Southern States, which threatens to disrupt the respectable anniversary celebration of his local music club. Faced with the choice of sliding back into the old ways or ending up as the local freak, Schultze makes a decision which will take him deep into the swamps and bayous of Louisiana … and back again …
Given that Schultze only says a handful of words in the entire film, it’s quite amazing how powerfully his character is conveyed, and how strongly I felt about and for him at the end. In many ways, the film was much more like a poem than a novel, using a few carefully chosen words and images to build an deeply resonant world.
music:
from Polka to Zydeco: a tune that’s so simple and still stays in your ears for days…
director:
MICHAEL SCHORR
Born in 1965, Landau, Germany. He studied philosophy, music and cinema in Munich. Before making Schultze Gets the Blues he directed short features and documentaries.
“I never thought the theme of the movie – how to cope with retirement in Western society – would get such a topicality. From the start I wanted – in the small town we’ve chosen as the location – to include the actual people, the groups (like the choir, the brass band, the chess club) and real locations in the movie, therefore achieving a kind of alienation: so the spectator can never be sure if he’s watching fact or fiction.”
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Cinematography: Axel Schneppat , Farzad Jodat
Screenplay: Michael Schorr
Producer: Jens Korner , Thomas Riedel , Oliver Niemeier
Music: Thomas Wittenbecher
Cast: Horst Krause , Harald Warmbrunn , Karl-Fred Muller , Ursula Schucht , Hannelore Schubert , Wolfgang Boos
official website
piece of music1
piece of music2
If you know the locations of the clubs in Louisiana that were in the movie I would appreciate it if you would send them to me. I have seen Schultze five times and have saved it on my DVR for future viewing. I live in Louisiana about 20 miles from the Atchafalya Basin and on Sunday I catch the bands at Wiskey River and Pat’s on the levee. I would like to go to the clubs in the movie.
Thanks,
John