Review of Nothing Bad Can Happen (2013) by Matthew S — 26 Jul 2015

Katrin Gebbe's "Tore Dances" was re-ttitled "Nothing Bad Can Happen" for US/Canada/UK release. That is too bad, because the original tile is more aligned to what this difficult film aims to achieve. Many have referred to this film as a sort of "vengeance" movie. I disagree. This goes far deeper than that. It is a provocative examination of dysfunction within the realm of "family" "evil" and "faith.".

Does it go too far? Probably.

This movie is not for all tastes or the feint of heart. That being stated, this is a very well-crafted film which presents us with a young man who refuses to relinquish his faith even when it becomes the target of insane humiliation, rage and torture.

More to the point, this visceral cinematic experience pushes an already ethically and morally corrupt man toward an even deeper level of evil. This vacant and lonely man's hostility is only increased when faced by a person who refuses the satisfaction of "fighting back" or "running away.".

Tore may be afraid Benno, but his hope in faith will not allow him to walk away. Benno's sociopathic desires only become more inflamed when he is unable to illicit a fight or fear.

In the end, an evil man is forced to stare into the eyes of his own guilt and the full-on realization the he has become something far lower than animal. It is to Sascha Alexander Gersak's credit in the role of "Benno" that he manages to convey faint sense of sadness that is so nuanced -- I found myself thinking about it even now.

Tore will forever dance in a state of bliss, while Benno will have no choice but to wallow and eventually drown in a vile of filth that is of his own making.

Kartin Gebbe never allows her film to commit itself to the ideology of faith. She is also just as committed to presenting extreme human cruelness in an almost casual or documentary manner. Her grim movie "based on true events" refuses any sort of "easy out" for her audience. The struggle between "good" and "evil" seems to be taking place in the mind of the audience as much as what is on the screen.

Enter this world at your own risk.