Victoria- Review

**Quick note: If you suffer from epilepsy please proceed with caution. There is heavy use of strobe lighting to set the scene for the club at the beginning**

I find myself habitually scrolling through options upon options (not necessarily good ones) on Netflix and so this decision was a spur of the moment choice. I knew nothing about this film, nor what language this film would be in. But it is safe to say that Sebastian Schipper's German crime thriller was a hit with me.

With a minimal understanding of German and working for a measly wage, Victoria tries to embrace her surroundings of her new life in Berlin. In amongst the party scene, she meets four men who in such a short space of time introduce her to the glamorous and less than glamorous life Germany has in store for her.

The performances were really something else and I appreciated it much more after the credits rolled when I realised that this entire film was shot in one continuous take. Now, having actors try and adapt to a two hour film that was said to have had only twelve pages of script is well and truly something else. What's more, is that most of this film was improvised.

Laia Costa played the role of Victoria, an optimistic yet naive young woman who appears to have an uncertainty about her. This is most likely due to the fact that she has next to no interaction with anyone in her new city, which also leads to the slightly niggling idea that she has a greater depth of loneliness residing behind her. Laia really worked well within this role. She made it emotional, perhaps at times relatable but what really did it for me, was the fact that she made it so easy to see through her eyes. She invites the viewer to see every move she makes, every bad decision. That to me is just so powerful.

Frederick Lau as Sonne presented himself as quite overconfident and a bit shady, however as his character grows and responds to Victoria onscreen, you can't help but watch as he becomes more gentle and cautious with people and his environment. Frederick really radiated chemistry between the other cast members onscreen and it just fit in so perfectly. I was actually really proud to have seen that be achieved so well.

Looking at the relationship between Sonne and Victoria in particular, they have this cute naivety but it isn't directly like a love story or a regular romantic drama. There's no claustrophobic atmosphere about them that makes it sickening or generic, nor is there any predictability. It's a perfectly subtle connection that makes me think of the kind of connection you make with someone (who for instance, you've only known for a day or a short period of time) and instantly feel this genuine feeling of love.

At first glance, this film appeared to be kind of slow moving and I wasn't really sure where it was going to progress and whether it would end up doing so anyway. After allowing the film to sit with me long after the end credits, it became easier to deconstruct the film. The first forty minutes that appear to be slow moving, actually works to build on the character bonds/ relationships and that feeling of familiarity. Without that, I doubt this film would have gotten as far as it did. Following that, the second half of this film works to develop tension before progressing into the conflict. From that point on, the actors literally pulled from all four corners to create an adrenaline-fuelled and thrilling experience. The amount of effort that was actually put into doing this to achieve such a result is beyond words. You can't help but appreciate all the work that's been done with the bare minimum. So despite not appearing as polished as most films generally would, for something done with barely any noticeable flaws is state of the art.

If you don't understand German, please make use of the subtitles as the characters do often revert back to German despite most of the film being in English. For me, the subtitles weren't 100% necessary, though they did help.

Victoria is a beautiful and heartbreakingly real adventure that puts the viewer first and creatively uses the bare minimum to create such a successful cinematic experience.

Score: 10/10.