Langreview Kurzkritik English Version Fakten + Credits

Wer wir gewesen sein werden ©2022 Erec Brehmer

The future tense II is a German tense that is basically used in two ways, but in both forms it contains only an expression of conjecture. On the one hand, it serves to express that an action will most probably be completed at a future time. On the other hand, it can also be used to make assumptions about actions in the past. Thus, this linguistic application is exactly the right construct for the just 35-year-old Erec Brehmer, who has already had to overcome several hurdles in his past and in his latest film tells about a subject that he does not yet consider to be completed. WER WIR GEWESEN SEIN WERDEN is only the second film after LA PALMA to be made under his direction and will certainly be one of the most important of his entire life.

This is what it is about

Erec never really expected to find the right partner to grow old with. As a filmmaker, he is always a bit trapped in his own little world. But when he meets Angelina Zeidler, everything changes for him and an exciting time full of togetherness, joint plans, affection and mutual support begins. Everything seems perfect, but fate sometimes has its own plans for people. And so it comes to pass that a serious car accident causes a world to collapse for Erec and Angelina dies as a result of the injuries. Instead of wedding preparations, there is now the organisation of a funeral. Instead of planning for children, Erec is busy day in and day out mentally coping with this terrible shock. Can he ever be happy again? When will that time come? Is a sensible life without Angelina even possible for him? These are just some of the questions the young filmmaker is suddenly faced with.

Review

What could be better for a filmmaker than to make a film of his own story, drawing from the wealth of his private recordings? What could be more terrible, however, to do this as a coping mechanism for one’s own grief and despair, thereby memorialising a person who will never know? WHO WE WERE represents a loving and heart-touching homage, which at times even moves to tears, but at the same time is not only a personal story, but also offers the audience the opportunity for self-reflection. Brehmer, who originally developed the film just for himself and, on the advice of other fellow directors, decided to reassemble the work in a new montage, offers his viewers an approach to coming to terms with grief and understanding. He also tries to find answers to seemingly insoluble questions.

Wer wir gewesen sein werden ©2022 Erec Brehmer

Instead of just documenting a short period of one’s own life, he provides a guidebook that could give support to many people in a similar situation and give them hints on how life can go on, even if it is over for others. Of course, he benefits from the fact that he was already working in the film industry before he started this project and that he was also passionate about capturing everything on camera in his private life. As he says himself in the film, his partner had to learn to cope with the fact that she was simply filmed at pretty much every moment. As a result, there is an impressively large collection of material, which is often of high quality in the shots and at the same time offers impressions of every emotional state. In addition, mobile phone photos and videos are used again and again, which means that a not insignificant part of the work takes place in portrait format and thus clearly differs from other pre-planned documentaries.

Guidebook instead of documentary

WER WIR GEWESEN SEIN WERDEN becomes a very personal story, but one in which viewers can empathise with ease. In order to provide the informative context, the director himself leads through the events by means of a voice-over and tells not only about the many experiences, but also about his feelings and thoughts, which in turn should make it recognisable that other people in similar situations are not alone in their emotional world and that there are countless people who feel the same way.

Wer wir gewesen sein werden ©2022 Erec Brehmer

Brehmer uses a well-timed dramaturgical structure for his film, which first offers the audience a personalisation of the protagonist, then comes to talk about the tragic loss and finally provides insights into the present and the mental processing. Because the story is told authentically and honestly and does not adopt any distanced points of view, it is easy for recipients to identify with the plot and ultimately even share the director’s love for Angelina. Subjective staging can be largely ruled out, as many shots were not planned with a fixed purpose, although of course the compilation and interpretation of their contents are heavily influenced by the editing. Tragically, despite a running time of just 81 minutes, the film is a little too long and at times lapses too much into babbling, which increasingly diminishes interest towards the end. This is especially true when the review moves further and further away from Angelina’s story.

Wer wir gewesen sein werden ©2022 Erec Brehmer

Conclusion

Even though Brehmer himself says: “This documentary was not made to make a name for myself as a filmmaker”, there is always the unpleasant feeling that money is being made from the death of another human being. At the same time, however, one wishes this film a great success, as it fabulously generalises a personal story and will therefore not only serve the director himself as a help in coming to terms with his loss, but can also offer many other people a bit of support. Brehmer delivers a stirring and empathetic work that is extremely noteworthy given the circumstances and where minor inaccuracies can be generously passed over. Nevertheless, it should be clear to every interested filmgoer that a documentary can be expected here that offers an enormous range of emotions, from laughter to tears, and ultimately hits the soul very hard.

EDIT: According to Mr Brehmer, the profits from the film will be donated to mourning institutions. Of course, we find this extremely commendable and worthy of support, which is why we are of course happy to revise the introductory sentence of the conclusion herewith.

How did you like the movie?
(5 Bewertungen, Durchschnitt: 9,60 von 10)

Loading...