Sixteen-year-old Lars and his father Henrik move from Berlin to a farm in the Uckermark region. He meets Marie, who is deaf. They fall in love. Marie's father isn't happy about the relationship between Lars and his daughter. He doesn't want to lose Marie. Meanwhile Henrik lets his sister-in-law, with whom he has a relationship, move in at the farm. At Christmas, Lars's mother suddenly turns up with her new lover and long unresolved conflicts break out in the family.
Ann-Kristin Reyels's tragicomic feature film debut shows a family numbed in speechlessness. The main figure Lars – marvelously played by Constantin von Jascheroff – finds no warmth or understanding at home, only with his dogs, outside in the snow. This is also the place where his relationship with Marie blossoms. It is in this winter landscape that his thoughts can move freely, and the impressively staged natural spaces make a decisive contribution to the story. Ann-Kristin Reyels finds precise as well as astounding metaphors for the main theme of the film: change. Jagdhunde is a winter journey to the country – bitter and beautiful at the same time.
Ansgar Vogt
Production: Credofilm GmbH, Berlin; ZDF – Das kleine Fernsehspiel, Mainz; Hochschule für Film und Fernsehen Konrad Wolf, Potsdam-Babelsberg
Screenplay: Marek Helsner, Ann-Kristin Reyels
Cinematographer: Florian Foest
Editor: Halina Daugird
Cast: Constantin von Jascheroff, Josef Hader, Luise Berndt, Sven Lehmann, Judith Engel, Ulrike Krumbiegel, Marek Harloff
Format: 35mm, Color
Running time: 86 minutes
Language: German
Photo: © credofilm GmbH
