''Atomised'' (german: Elementarteilchen; also known as ''The Elementary Particles'') is a 2006 German drama film written and directed by

Oskar Roehler Oskar Roehler (born 21 January 1959) is a German film director, screenwriter and journalist. He was born in Starnberg, the son of writers Gisela Elsner and Klaus Roehler. Since the mid-1980s, he has been working as a screenwriter, for, among ot ...

and produced by Oliver Berben and

Bernd Eichinger Bernd Eichinger (; 11 April 194924 January 2011) was a German film producer, director, and screenwriter. Life and career Eichinger was born in Neuburg an der Donau. He attended the University of Television and Film Munich in the 1970s and bou ...

. It is based on the novel '' Les Particules élémentaires'' by

Michel Houellebecq Michel Houellebecq (; born Michel Thomas, 26 February 1956 or 1958) is a French author, known for his novels, poems and essays, as well as an occasional actor, filmmaker and singer. His first book was a biographical essay on the horror writer ...

. The film stars

Moritz Bleibtreu Moritz Johann Bleibtreu (; was born in Munich, Germany on August 13, 1971. He has worked over the years as a film actor, voice actor, and film director. Bleibtreu has been a successful actor in many movies such as '' Run Lola Run, Das Experimen ...

as Bruno,

Christian Ulmen Christian Ulmen (born 22 September 1975) is a German entertainer, actor, voice actor and audiobook narrator. Career Ulmen was born in Neuwied. He started his television career in 1996 as a video jockey on MTV Europe. He is known for his creativ ...

as Michael,

Martina Gedeck Martina Gedeck (; born 14 September 1961) is a German actress. She came to broader, international attention due to her roles in films such as '' Mostly Martha'' (2001), ''The Lives of Others'' (2006), and ''The Baader Meinhof Complex'' (2008). Sh ...

as Christiane,

Franka Potente Franka Potente (; born 22 July 1974) is a German actress. She first appeared in the comedy film ''After Five in the Forest Primeval'' (1995), for which she won a Bavarian Film Award for Best Young Actress. Her breakthrough came in 1998, when she ...

as Annabelle, and

Nina Hoss Nina Hoss (; born 7 July 1975) is a German stage and film actress. Early life Hoss was born in Stuttgart, West Germany. Her father, , was a German trade unionist and politician (member of the Bundestag with The Greens). Her mother, , was an act ...

as Jane. The film had its premiere at the

Berlin Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in February 2006. In contrast to the book setting in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, the film was shot entirely and is mainly situated in various places in Germany. Cities and states in Germany used for filming included

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and larg ...

and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. Contrary to the book, the film does not have

cultural pessimism Cultural pessimism arises with the conviction that the culture of a nation, a civilization, or humanity itself is in a process of irreversible decline. It is a variety of pessimism formulated by a cultural critic. Traditional versions It has bee ...

as a main theme, and it has an alternative ending.

Plot

The film focuses on Michael (Michael Djerzinski) and Bruno and their disturbed

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

. They are half-brothers who are very different from each other. They both had an unusual childhood because their mother was a

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...

, instead growing up with their grandmothers and in

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...

s. Michael grows up to become a

molecular biologist Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

and in doing so becomes more fascinated with

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar wor ...

and separating

reproduction Reproduction (or procreation or breeding) is the biological process by which new individual organisms – "offspring" – are produced from their "parent" or parents. Reproduction is a fundamental feature of all known life; each individual or ...

and sexuality by

cloning Cloning is the process of producing individual organisms with identical or virtually identical DNA, either by natural or artificial means. In nature, some organisms produce clones through asexual reproduction. In the field of biotechnology, cl ...

rather than having actual sexual relationships. He is frustrated by his current job in

and decides to continue his research on cloning at an institution in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Bruno, a secondary school teacher and unsuccessful author, on the other hand, is obsessed with his own sexual desires and systematically drowns himself in failed attempts with women and nights with prostitutes. He voluntarily checks himself into a mental institution after having

sexually harassed Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...

one of his students. Before his departure to Ireland, Michael visits the village of his childhood for the first time in years. To his surprise, he meets his childhood friend Annabelle there and finds that she is still single and they start a sexual relationship. Bruno leaves the mental institution and goes on holiday to a hippie camp after being faced with divorce by his wife. At the camp he meets Christiane, who is also sexually open. Although they have an open relationship, he falls in love with her. During a sex orgy at one of their visits to a swing club, Christiane collapses and Bruno is faced in hospital with the news that Christiane is paralysed forever because of a chronic illness. Nonetheless Bruno wants to live with her until the end. However Christiane insists that he should take some time for consideration. Michael moves to Ireland and learns that, despite his doubts, his old research on cloning was a revolutionary breakthrough. However he misses Annabelle but does not manage to get her on the phone. Annabelle is informed that she is pregnant but must have an abortion and her womb removed due to life-threatening abnormalities. Bruno calls Christiane but always replaces the receiver after just one ring. He finally drives to her apartment only to learn that she has committed suicide shortly before. Subsequently he re-enters mental institution totally devastated. Michael is told by Annabelle's mother that Annabelle had an abortion and a severe surgery. He immediately leaves Ireland for Annabelle and finally openly admits his deep love to her. In hospital Bruno has

hallucination A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinatio ...

s of Christiane who explains to him that her suicide was not his fault. In his imagination he tells her that he ultimately has decided to stay with her forever. After Annabelle recovers and before their departure to Ireland, Michael and Annabelle visit Bruno in hospital and take him to the beach. Michael asks Bruno if he wants to come with Annabelle and him to Ireland but Bruno decides to live happily in hospital with Christiane in his mind forever. The film ends with title cards stating that Michael Djerzinski received the

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

. This too is fiction.

Cast

Reception

The film has a 100 percent rating in the review aggregating website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

based on seven reviews.

References

External links

* {{Michel Houellebecq 2006 films Films based on French novels Films set in Germany Films set in Berlin German drama films Films directed by Oskar Roehler Films based on works by Michel Houellebecq Films about dysfunctional families Films about sexuality Films produced by Bernd Eichinger Films scored by Martin Todsharow 2006 drama films 2000s German films