By Mansi M.
Toronto
The Teacher’s Lounge, a thriller, was presented at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). The story revolves around a teacher, Carla (Leonie Benesch), who comes to teach at a German school only to get caught in a web of issues around recent thefts. She does not agree with the procedure to find the thief that teachers carry out and tries to shield the students.
The 98-minute film directed by German filmmaker llker Catak slowly builds from one scene to the next and makes Carla the focus of attention as she deals with both students and teachers. The film touches on many topics including racism, authority, rebellion, and alienation. Even though her intentions are good, her credibility is at stake.
The most interesting part of the film is that there are no victims, and nobody backs down from their own defense. Denial is the crux of the film, making it exciting to the viewers through and through. The film is made from the perspective of the teachers, giving viewers an opportunity to see how they are affected in certain situations. The students also play a vital role in the pressure situation they can feel from authority even if they have the choice to say No.
“Denial is the crux of the film,” says Catak.
The film makes the viewers ponder about how the main character, Carla, is affected by all the factors in the play. The intense build-up from one scene to the next is beautifully created. The movie exemplifies that democracy can only be created when someone bleeds for it and resists something that is bigger than them.
This film is certainly worth watching as multiple layers of the film merge together to create the end result.
