A ball slides down the staircase, hitting a few steps and then bouncing off the floor to finally stop at a distance. In the first moments of Anatomy of a Fall, Justine Triet gives meaning to dropping by showing us how consequences are going to be – but it’s an empty platform for creating full storylines as there is no one to witness that can confirm if it is true or not. With this film, Triet and Arthur Harari who co-wrote its script choreographed with great skill a dance between real world and fictionality, tragedy or ability to survive. It is both the weighty narrative and characters that make it absolutely breathless movie that will stun you by stealing your voice in no time; thus making you feel compassionate about these protagonists who walk through explosion sites of truth, lies, and something in between.
The filmmaker’s fourth feature follows Sandra (Sandra Hueller), a German writer who finds herself on trial for the murder of her husband, Samuel (Samuel Theis), after he accidentally fell from their attic window. They have only one child (Milo Machado-Graner) who was born blind and will become the sole witness in an accident where his mother has to prove her innocence.
The tension pulled by Hueller throughout this thriller-drama is spellbinding. Her performance as Sandra is magnificent because she plays someone who is a dedicated but humanly flawed mom whose personality when the situation change gets fragmented into parts revealing another shrewd calculative warrior within herself standing against all odds. As much restrained as volatile, she always remains interesting. Every little part of her reasons starts unveiling when Anatomy of a Fall jumps from a court hearing into the family dwelling (both now and past). To put it differently, Sandra is an enigma; we don’t know whether she really did kill him or not—and that rests solely on Hueller’s shoulders.
“A couple always means some kind of disorder,” she says to him in a flashback scene where their conversation is introduced as evidence during the trial. That damning statement perfectly sums up their union’s outcome, one that forms the core of this tragic event. Samuel envied Sandra’s professional achievements and in many ways tried to measure up by producing responses to domestic responsibilities and his family needs. Both parties felt bitter but she thinks he deserved nothing. In her opinion, he wanted something not within her power to grant. But it was not even Sandra’s fault; as put by her lawyer, she was found guilty only because she “succeeded where her husband failed.” That is mean, although true and fair enough for this couple who had always been hurt in different ways. This choice of complexities between two individuals shapes uncertainty surrounding what truth is, which makes all spectators correlate with everyone appearing on the screen.
For Sandra, the court is a place like a battlefield. In it, she confronts Antoine Reinartz, who plays the role of a prosecutor. He is just too smart and skilled when he portrays someone consumed by his work as an officer of law. It’s in this respect that Reinartz utilizes his own guessing game to figure out what should be asked when and how to find something damaging him or her in all possible ways; however, as much credit goes to Triet and Harai’s script as it does to Reinartz’s performance, who manages to be brutal and quick enough without being unprofessional-a great villain for this occasion.
However, with Reinartz involved as part of Anatomy of a Fall cast, the character becomes quite an adversary. It is so wonderful to see them argue with each other during their time in court.
Afterward, there is Daniel Machado-Graner who plays the role with such emotional richness that alongside the antiseptic realism of the trial Daniel’s mental journey spins out – which doubtlessly confirms that his trip cannot be reduced into a two-dimensional concept because of its weighty nature. This simply means if one takes away Daniel’s mental transformation from the storyline, there will still exist this drama and intensity at the very heart of Anatomy of a Fall. However, it would not have been such a solid massive film full of reflective thoughts on human impulse and preservation that it currently is. Watching Daniel travel through his pain – we become him also “I need to understand” he cries to his mother after his dad dies. Then we need to understand why we are engaged in the search for truth unfolding on screen.
In addition, the sound design and music coordination for Anatomy of a Fall serve just as vital roles in telling its story and establishing its tone as Triet’s direction, script, and heavy ensemble cast do.
An instrumental version of 50 Cent’s “P.I.M.P” eventually comes to play a role between Samuel’s deathly tragedy and Sandra’s solitude. But that is not an easy task for any Top 40 pop song like this one, although it does work in that strange way because of its bigness when the instruments are isolated from each other. It turns out into a disorienting, jumbled-up noise that seems like confusion and represents a soundscape of people trying to go through what Sandra and her family are experiencing now. Daniel’s frantic piano playing accompanies several really heavy moments of the movie while at the same time; it shows how his emotional landscape has been completely messed up by events in the film. These are conflicts within these sounds that speak to the themes of Anatomy of a Fall.
Similarly, Simon Beaufils’ cinematography abounds in beautifully calculated options meant to enhance confusion and analysis that begins to emerge among viewers as they watch it unfold. These close-ups of Sandra, as she describes her son’s accident, demonstrate ticks indicating more secrets than she tells. To depict lawyers arguing with one another via representing Daniel through different angles without ever showing them is just genius- this single option adds so much to audience immersion yet is simple enough for anyone.
This drama is fraught with tension and mystery. It’s another testament to Triet’s talent as a filmmaker – from her excellent writing to her enthralling directorial vision. If she keeps crafting stories of such intense psychological and emotional depth, I will be glad to see what she does next. These stories are both about the soul and challenge it. Anatomy of a Fall doesn’t hesitate to bring into question who the person we may become is.
Final Verdict
The French film Anatomy of a Fall by Justine Triet performs an intriguing dance between tragedy and metamorphosis into survival through reality manipulation and imagination. With actress Sandra Hueller in complete control over an audacious script written by her and Triet along with Arthur Harari, this is a very involving movie about the prices that have to be paid for a broken marriage.
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