Karl Marx City is a 2017 German documentary film, written, produced and directed by Michael Tucker and Petra Epperlein. The film was premiered at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.
Karl Marx City | |
---|---|
Directed by | Michael Tucker Petra Epperlein |
Written by | Michael Tucker Petra Epperlein |
Produced by | Michael Tucker Petra Epperlein |
Starring | Petra Epperlein Christa Epperlein |
Narrated by | Petra Epperlein[1] |
Cinematography | Michael Tucker |
Music by | Alexander Kliment |
Distributed by | Bond/360 |
Release date |
|
Running time | 89 minutes |
Country | Germany |
Languages | German English |
Box office | $41,070[2] |
Synopsis
editAfter her father commits suicide in 1999, filmmaker Petra Epperlein journeys through the former East Germany in search of answers.
Cast
edit- Christa Epperlein
- Douglas Selvage
- Hubertus Knabe
- Petra Epperlein
- Udo Grashoff
- Uwe Epperlein
- Volker Epperlein
Reception
editOn review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 96% based on 26 critics, with an average rating of 8/10.[3] On Metacritic, Karl Marx City has an above average score of 73 out of a 100 based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[4]
A.O. Scott of The New York Times called the documentary "unsettling" and added that "[it] is a smart, highly personal addition to the growing syllabus of distressingly relevant cautionary political tales".[5]
Scott Tobias of Variety has compared the film's atmosphere to the one of today.[6]
Stephen Dalton of The Hollywood Reporter, following the film's screening at Toronto International Film Festival, wrote: "a key joy of Karl Marx City is its strong, arty aesthetic".[7]
Slant Magazine's Jake Cole said that the lead heroine (Petra Epperlein), "[who have] personal ties to the subject matter[,] provides the documentary with a necessary anchor point".[8]
Ella Taylor of NPR wrote that "[the film] suffers now and then from the same breathy tendency to overdramatize already incendiary material that marred Epperlein and Tucker's 2005 Iraq doc[umentary] Gunner Palace.[9]
References
edit- ^ Chang, Justin (20 April 2017). "Review: 'Karl Marx City' chillingly revisits life in the shadow of East Germany". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ "Karl Marx City". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ "Karl Marx City (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ "Karl Marx City (2017)". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ Scott, A.O. (28 March 2017). "Review: 'Karl Marx City' Revisits the Everyday Terror of Dictatorship". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ Tobias, Scott (21 September 2016). "Film Review: 'Karl Marx City'". Variety.
- ^ Dalton, Stephen (11 September 2016). "'Karl Marx City': Film Review - TIFF 2016". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ Cole, Jake (26 March 2017). "Review: Karl Marx City". Slant Magazine.
- ^ Taylor, Ella (30 March 2017). "In The Documentary 'Karl Marx City,' A Grim But Enlightening Homecoming". NPR. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
External links
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