Amnesia (4 Stars)

Maybe Netflix isn't a complete waste of time after all. I found this 2015 film that I haven't seen before. I decided to watch it because Bruno Ganz appears, though only in a small role. We only see him for 15 minutes, but his role is significant.

The film takes place in Ibiza in 1990. Even the most trivial of scenes are surrounded by intense beauty. It could be argued that the outdoor scenes are gratuitous, having no relationship to the film's plot itself, but does it matter? The director and his crew were probably awed by the beauty around them, so they couldn't help but include it in the film.

The film is a love story, even though the love is suppressed and isn't allowed to develop. Joe Gellert, a 25-year-old DJ from Berlin, has just moved to Ibiza. He's heard that there's an emerging club scene with possibilities that he could never find in Germany. That was probably true in 1990, but a few years later Germany was the place to be.

Joe's nearest neighbour is a 70-year-old German woman called Martha. It would be an exaggeration to call them next-door neighbours. There's no road, and the houses are dotted around on the hillside. Martha has lived in the house for 40 years, and she has no electricity. She could have paid to be connected, but she wasn't interested. Joe and Martha spend time together talking, eating and drinking wine. Joe feels a romantic attachment to Martha, but she tells him it's better not to take things further.

Martha is fleeing from her past. During the Second World War she lived in Switzerland with her Jewish lover. In 1944 he was foolish enough to visit friends in France. He was never seen again. Since then she's had a hatred for Germany and everything German. She refuses to speak German, drink German wine or drive in German cars.

Everything comes to the surface when Joe is visited by his mother and his grandfather (Bruno Ganz). The grandfather has been keeping secrets about what he did in the war, and Martha is the first person to encourage him to tell the truth.

I was disappointed that the romance didn't go further. Age is just a number, as they often say. Maybe Martha was as old as Joe's grandfather, but they experienced a meeting of souls.

This is the view of Martha's house from Joe's balcony. Next-door neighbours?

To visit one another they have to walk through the bushes.

Was it really necessary to have this long shot when Joe and Martha are walking to the beach? We can hardly see them.

As if to be defiant, the camera pulls back even further. It's all about the scenery.

The two lovers go on a car trip. Once more, the scenery is more important than the journey itself.

This is probably the most extreme scene of gratuitous beauty. The camera lingers on this tree for almost a whole minute, zooming in to close-ups of its branches.

The scenery makes the film powerful, whether or not it's relevant. Maybe it's meant to be a contrast to the ugliness of Nazi Germany, which is discussed but never shown.

Joe and Martha enjoy the view. It's a perfect place to fall in love.

The actress who plays Martha was 69 when she made the film, the right age for the role. Nevertheless, she looks very good for her age. You have to look close to see her wrinkles. I can understand Joe falling in love with her. He didn't fall in love with her for her looks, he was attracted by her inner beauty, but her outer appearance was attractive enough to prevent him being repulsed.

P.S. In case you're wondering about the film's title, Amnesia is the name of the biggest club on Ibiza.