City Land Fluss (2011)

Directed by: Benjamin Cantu | 88 minutes | drama | Actors: Lukas Steltner, Kai Michael Müller, Steven Baade, Florian Born, Eric Fechner, Christian Hahn, Charlina Ingold, Jan Jendruschewitz, Felix Kaminski, Simon Kirmeier, Katharina Körner, Christian Sauermilch, Tino Trempler, Tobias Weichert

When you think of a romance on a farm, you quickly come to images of vulgar buttocks squeezing and rummaging in haylofts. Filmmaker Benjamin Cantu, who was born in Budapest and now resides in Germany, proves that things can be done differently, more tasteful and more poetic. In a precise, almost documentary way, he sketches life on the farm in the vicinity of Brandenburg, in the east of Germany. The farm in question is a training ground for young people who see a future as a farmer. This ‘farmer’s trade school’ is real and most of the people in the film—students and staff—in fact play themselves. Except for the two young protagonists; they are the only professional actors in ‘Stadt Land Fluss’ (2011).

Marko (Lukas Steltner) is one of the boys who do an internship on the farm. He’s not the easiest boy. His family has fallen apart due to alcoholism, which is why the boy does not drink a drop himself. The lanky Marko is shy, introverted and doesn’t make friends easily. He also has no idea what he wants with his life. He doesn’t go well with studying as well as on the job, but he doesn’t know whether farming is really his future. Jakob (Kai-Michael Müller, with a lovely classic rebel curly haircut) is his opposite. He has an energetic personality, is full of self-confidence and after some awkwardness at the beginning, he soon feels completely at home on the farm. Jakob was in the running for a well-paid job in finance, but gave it up for an internship in the agricultural sector. Unlike Marko, he is at ease with himself. Cautiously, the two build a friendship. It soon becomes clear that Jakob has deeper feelings for Marko. However, Marko does not feel comfortable, does not know what to do with his emotions.

Cantu keeps his film very innocent; more than a few bare upper bodies are not shown. Tenderness is paramount here. The secret looks in love (Müller is quite adept at it), revealing body language and an undeniable physical attraction between the two boys hides enough (repressed) eroticism. The chemistry between Steltner and Müller is also very convincing and the romance that blossoms is one of the most endearing we’ve ever seen. In the second half of the film – with a modest yet intense final scene – there is hardly anything to criticize. However, the first half hour leaves a lot to be desired. The emphasis is too little on the central characters and too much on the dry, businesslike portrayal of agricultural actions. That can be quite interesting – how calves get their ear tags fitted, for example – but not in a film that ultimately revolves around two boys and their budding love. We want to see them, not those cows or those machines! On the one hand, this documentary-like setting gives the film something unique and realistic, but on the other it distracts too much. A sharper focus, right from the start of the film, would certainly have helped ‘City Land Fluss’.

Fortunately, Cantu recovers quickly, especially from the moment Jacob enters. The young Kai-Michael Müller pops off the screen. Together with Steltner, he is the main reason to see ‘Stadt Land Fluss’. In a down-to-earth setting they know how to convincingly shape a heartwarming, moving intimacy. We will definitely keep an eye on these guys. As for the movie itself; what a shame about that very dry first half hour, otherwise the score for ‘Stadt Land Fluss’ would have been half a point higher.