Directed by: Michael HanekeI love the ending of the film, of which I will give away nothing save to say that it makes the film less of a mystery and more of a study. Does it matter who committed these crimes? Is anyone in this community really innocent?
What's frightening and wonderfully complex about a film like this is that it does not focus on individual crimes, a flaw of so many films which center on 'who dunnit'. The question is not who committed these crimes, but who didn't. Who in this town is actually innocent? By the end of the film I had implicated nearly everyone, children and adults alike, save the sweet and naive young couple innocently falling in love in the midst of the collapse of their community. The symbol of the white ribbon is a powerful one, especially as we watch a father tie it to his children, himself as guilty of sordid and heartless actions as his children, whose innocence may simply be a guise for a deeper malice, or perhaps just a transparent film behind which plays the irrational emotional explosions of childhood.
This is the kind of film you can watch over and over and learn more each time. It is disturbing and disheartening in the honesty and deception of the characters, and never strays into cliche or simplicity. A powerful film, captured in black white with brilliant art direction, that puts us into the time period of the film. This is not a film to enjoy, but it will leave you with a feast of symbols and thoughts on which to dine.
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