Review of The Edukators (2004) by Aliya D — 26 Jun 2008

"The system is overheated!" This is like Ecclesiastes for revolutionaries and the disaffected youth of the current generation... And since I entered this film with no expectations, The Edukators hit me like a combination of a spiked punch and a sucker punch - it left me surprisingly shaken yet somehow also refreshingly, intoxicatingly awakened.

Writer/director Hans Weingartner took the passionate nature of the characters ideals and applied them in making of this movie; it's been ages since I've seen such vivid, vibrant hues in a film - from the chaotic neon of the boisterous Berlin cityscape to the pastoral calm of the countryside, this movie is awash in breathtaking color.

I liked the intellectual content of the film; it reminds us of how few films today deal sympathetically with characters who are not only outside the system, but actively oppose it. Even better, the movie does not simply romanticize the radicals and demonize the businessman.

It actually raises more questions than it answers, which is probably a good thing. It is not a perfect film; some of the situations seem a bit contrived. The ending is more of a clever punchline than a serious resolution of matters.

Still, it is very engaging and well-acted and puts a new face on the old dilemma of participating in vs. fighting mainstream society.