The White Ribbon film Review

The White Ribbon by Michael Haneke (2009) is a film set in a remote German village in the year leading up to World War 1. The story depicts the lives of the villagers and the mysterious events that occur. Haneke originally said that the film is about the ‘origins of terrorism’ but, to me, the film is more about the fear of the unknown.

The use of black and white is very effective in this film it helps to intensify the mood as there is no soundtrack that will manipulate your emotions. Most of the mysterious events that occur usually happen under the cover of darkness; the black and white highlights this and increases the sombre mood, and the extremes between the light and dark subtly let you know when something bad is going to occur. The main source for light is candlelight, the way the candle flickers creating shadows adds to the mysterious almost ghost like quality of this film.
The snow in the last part of the film is extra bright, this almost symbolises the last happy event that the village (& country) have before the war starts. The black and white contrasts also highlight the differences in classes. The richer homes such as the Pastor and Baron homes are lighter, with big windows allowing the light to come through, whereas the poorer homes are darker with less decoration.

The poor homes are smaller and more basically furnished. Such as the farmers home, there are lots of people cramped into a small space. The cramped unhygienic conditions are intensified with the subtle use of flies. The living conditions are also determined by the use of camera angle. For the poorer home the shots are closer and appear to be more cramped, the richer homes are shot from an angle that creates space.

A main theme throughout the film is the treatment of children. The conversation in the first half of the film between the doctors children about death is very haunting. The conversation is very mature for children of their age. The little boy is being very direct with his questions, it makes you wonder what he needs to know the answers for? The colour white usually represents purity, but in the film the Pastor ties white ribbons onto his children to remind them of their actions which are challenging this image. At the end of the film the school teacher suggests that it is the children that are committing these offences. It adds a twist to the story that you wouldn’t expect.

The structure of all the families is very patriarchal. The Baron, the Pastor and the Doctor are superior to the women in this film.   Even from a young age it is clear to see that girls are discriminated against. In the shot where they are walking home after school, the boys run ahead while the girls walk behind. This structure is easy to see in the way that Baron is not very popular but is very powerful and owns the land which in return gains the peoples respect. The doctor is taking advantage of both the housekeeper and his teenage daughter. This is a good example of a conspiracy of silence, most people know that the doctor is sexually abusing his daughter but no one says a word. Even the film only hints at the fact.

I like the way that realism is captured in this film. The long/static camera shots are really effective when it come to building tension and suspense. There isn’t much editing within each section so you see people walk from one room to the next, but with it being chopped around, it all occurs in real time. This causes conversations to be heard behind closed doors and a lot is left to the imagination. Realism is also captured with the background noise. There are lots of birds in the background of outside shots and this makes it more believable.

The scene where the camera shots are used to the best effect is where the doctor’s son is looking for his sister. You see the boy wandering around looking and you know that the doctor is in the room with his daughter. The long camera shots and the use of silence make it really uncomfortable to watch as you predict what the boy will find when he goes into the room.

There are hints of morality throughout the film. The romance between the narrator/school teacher and Eva gives a welcome break to all the mysterious goings on within the village. Also when the boy asks his dad if he can look after the injured bird shows kindness, this brings a lighter side to the film.

Overall, this film is not what I expected it to be. At the end of the film you are left with no answers to the mysteries and this causes us as the audience to come to our own conclusions, which is good because all of the events can be seen in different ways. This film is very powerful but also dark and disturbing, from all that is suggested and seen, not everyone is as they appear to each other. All the talking behind closed doors gives the impression of a door being closed; maybe the door is being closed on the era where no one has ever heard of war.