With creative industries hit hard by Covid-19, now is a better time than most to release Casting. Showing just how difficult it can be getting a movie made in the first place, it’s a tale of egos and faded dreams but no less compelling for that.
Director Vera (Judith Engel) is supposedly in charge of a remake of German classic ‘The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant’. With the shadow of master filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder looming large, she must choose her two lead actors. Unfortunately Vera knows everything about what she doesn’t want and nothing about what she does. This holds the production in limbo, with actresses auditioning repeatedly for their indecisive helmer.
It’s apparent early on that this has become a form of torture, albeit unintentional. Or is it? Real life director Nicolas Wackerbarth boxes his characters within the confines of a studio. This naturally generates palpable tension, with sensitive souls and powerful personalities jostling for positions of influence. The action feels like a play, and Wackerbarth’s hand held camerawork adds a documentary quality.
Also in the mix is Gerwin (Andreas Lust), an ageing actor who’s called upon to read opposite hopeful candidates. On the outside he’s doing Vera a favour, having left acting behind to run a business. Yet the very fluid situation might work to his advantage, as he finds himself the only reliable performer in the room. The behind the scenes drama stokes the embers of his own ambition. If he plays his cards right, could he wind up playing the male lead?
It’s unclear whether Casting would be of interest to those outside theatrical circles. That said, Wackerbarth brings the precarious scenario to life most effectively, with a sense you’re there and going through it with the characters. No music underscores the rising stress levels. The viewer is subject to a flighty world dictated by age, gender and sexuality. People’s personal traumas are mined shamelessly for onscreen results. Details as small as the colour of someone’s ears can tip things on their axis. Ultimately the project everyone labours toward is a remake, Wackerbarth underlining the emptiness of it all from the get go.
Lust is particularly good, described at one point as an “old looking boy”. Co-writer Wackerbarth (with Hannes Held) is wise to show the playful side of the job. As Dev Patel once put it, acting is really an arena for big kids, no matter what their age. The fulfilment and thwarting of Gerwin’s dreams turn him into a monster of sorts, though one with understandable motives.
Stories about actors often fall into self indulgence. Casting takes the worst things about the profession and makes them into a taut and eye-opening 90 mins of comedy drama. The show does indeed go on. But at what cost to the people involved…?
Casting
Summary
Subtle yet simmering, Nicolas Wackerbarth shows it takes blood, sweat, tears and more than a bit of an ego to bring a movie to the screen.
