The Fire

Judith (Maja Schöne) has been raped on her way home from a party. She is fighting the fact that this crime has changed her life, but the destructive force of the experience changes her everyday experiences little by little. She finally takes the courage to seek legal action against her assailant and finds some solace in the hope that the rapist will be brought to justice. But the man gives false testimony and there is no lawsuit after all. Judith realizes that she will have to settle things on her own. She confronts the offender, forces a meeting with him and his family… How can a human being survive if the universal trust has been shattered? After a first paralysis and stagnation the victim escapes the emotional implosion by channeling the pent-up emotions and aggressions to the outside. The intense way director Brigitte Maria Bertele confronts the audience with the hurtful moments and realization hits uncomfortably close to home. Judith’s path is complex, surprising and far from being conciliatory. –Oldenburg Film Festival