''Emma's Bliss'' is a 2006 romantic tragic-comedy that takes place in contemporary rural
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
. The movie, directed by
Sven Taddicken
Sven (in Danish and Norwegian, also Svend and also in Norwegian most commonly Svein) is a Scandinavian first name which is also used in the Low Countries and German-speaking countries. The name itself is Old Norse for "young man" or "young war ...
, is based on the novel ''Emmas Glück'' (now translated into English under the title ''Emma's Luck'') by
Claudia Schreiber
Claudia Schreiber (born 1958 in Grebenstein, Hesse) is a German journalist and author.
After studying journalism, education science and sociology at the University of Göttingen and University of Mainz, 1979 – 1985, M.A. degree, she worked as ...
.
Plot
Upon being informed that he is terminally ill with
pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer arises when cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a mass. These cancerous cells have the ability to invade other parts of the body. A number of types of panc ...
, Max, who works at a used car lot, steals over seventy thousand illegally gained
euro
The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
(perhaps around $1 million) from Hans, his employer and best friend, and drives off in his
Jaguar
The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the thi ...
. Hans gives chase, but quits when it becomes too dangerous. Max crashes the roadside barrier at high speed, ending up in a small pig and poultry farm miles from anywhere. He is lifted unconscious from the wreck by the farmer, Emma, a strong woman who lives alone. She discovers the money, torches the car and tends to Max's injuries, which are not serious.
When Max regains consciousness she lies about the fire and denies having taken anything from the car. Max hides from her the fact that he is dying. He also hides from the police, in the form of the nearby village's young officer, Henner, who has many times offered to marry Emma and help solve her debt problems. Love blooms between Max and Emma after some stumbles, such as his finding out that she had taken the money. She surreptitiously returns the money to him and he, just as surreptitiously, pays off her debts. His sickness worsens and they marry.
A recurring theme is Emma's love for her animals and the way she slaughters a pig by caressing it while gently cutting its throat with a sharp blade. After what is clearly to be Max and Emma's last roll in the hay (literally), she reaches for the knife but then returns it — she cannot bring herself to do the deed. Max then presses it into her hand. The camera then focuses on his face as he loses consciousness.
Cast
*
Jördis Triebel
Jördis Triebel (born 30 October 1977) is a German film and stage actress.
Early life
Triebel grew up the second oldest of four sisters in the Prenzlauer Berg locality of Berlin. Through her mother, who before the fall of the Berlin Wall was a ...
- Emma
*
Jürgen Vogel
Jürgen Peter Vogel (; born 29 April 1968, in Hamburg) is a German actor, screenwriter, film producer and singer. One of the most successful character actors in German cinema, he first broke out in 1992 with his role in '' Little Sharks''.Jürgen ...
- Max
*
Hinnerk Schönemann
Hinnerk Schönemann (born 30 November 1974) is a German actor. in
< ...
- Henner
*
Martin Feifel Martin may refer to:
Places
* Martin City (disambiguation)
* Martin County (disambiguation)
* Martin Township (disambiguation)
Antarctica
* Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land
* Port Martin, Adelie Land
* Point Martin, South Orkney Islands
Aust ...
- Hans Hilfinger
*
Nina Petri
Nina Petri (born 16 July 1963) is a German actress. She has appeared in more than one hundred films since 1983.
Partial filmography
Television appearances
Awards
* Bavarian Film Award (best actress) (1994)
* Deutscher Filmpreis (best suppor ...
Arved Birnbaum
Arved Birnbaum (1962 – 24 October 2021) was a German actor most known to audiences worldwide as Max Riemelt's down to earth senior in Dennis Gansel
Dennis Gansel (born 4 October 1973) is a German film director, writer and actor .
Life and ...
- Karl
Production
It was filmed in 2005 in
Gummersbach
Gummersbach (; ksh, Jummersbach) is a town in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, being the district seat of the Oberbergischer Kreis. It is located east of Cologne.
History
In 1109 Gummersbach was mentioned in official documents for ...
(Berghausen), Rönsahl, Gimborn bei Marienheide and
Bergneustadt
Bergneustadt (; ksh, Bärrschneushtadt) is a municipality in the eastern part of the Oberbergischer Kreis (district), in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located 50 km east of Cologne. It is part of the Berg region.
History
In 1301 t ...
(a local vehicle displays a license-plate indicating it is from Hochsauerlandkreis in Nordrhein-Westfalen). It was released the following year.
Awards
*Jördis Triebel received an Undine Award for Best Young Character Portraitist in 2006.
*Jürgen Vogel was given the
Bavarian Film Prize Bavarian is the adjective form of the German state of Bavaria, and refers to people of ancestry from Bavaria.
Bavarian may also refer to:
* Bavarii, a Germanic tribe
* Bavarians, a nation and ethnographic group of Germans
* Bavarian, Iran, a villa ...
award for Best Actor in 2007
DVD
The film was released on a DVD in 2008 with German soundtrack and Korean subtitles. The running time is listed as 99 minutes (136 minutes total) NTSC format is given as 16:9.
It has been released in Australia (PAL, 16:9) with English subtitles by Gryphon Entertainment.