Today I had the chance to see a teacher's preview of Krabat, a movie about the children's book by Otfried Preußler. I am very impressed by this movie, it is like a fairy tale in the Brother Grimm style, set in Germany around 1600 during the time of the 30 year war. To quote the outline from another review:
It is the middle of the 1600’s and Europe has been decimated by the twin horrors of the Thirty Years War and the arrival of the plague. Krabat, a fourteen year old boy has been orphaned by the plague and now lives his life on the absolute outer margins of society, traveling from village to village with a pair of similarly orphaned friends to beg out a meager existence. Life is grim, verging on hopeless. There is a better than average chance that Krabat will not live out the harsh winter until change comes from an unexpected source: his dreams. Over and over again Krabat dreams of ravens, eleven of them, calling him to join them and become the twelfth. When the ravens deliver a specific location and the promise of food that is all the word Krabat needs: he abandons his friends to the cold, hungry night and sets off to save himself.
What he finds is the Mill. A water powered stone mill lorded over by The Master who asks whether Krabat simply wants to learn the milling trade or if he wants to learn the ‘other things’ as well. Krabat chooses to learn whatever he can and so is initiated into a secret brotherhood of sorcerers. The eleven other apprentices are all learning the arts of black magic under the firm hand of The Master, learning spells for strength, learning to separate soul from body, learning to strike down enemies from a distance and, yes, learning to transform into ravens. It’s heady stuff for a young man, a full belly and the chance to literally become something more, something different, from all of the people in the world outside of the Mill and Krabat throws himself into the work.
Though Krabat progresses quickly, winning the favor of The Master, it is clear all is not well. There is an air of uneasiness to the place. Discipline is hard and violent. And, as the eldest apprentice cautions him, nothing comes without a price. And once that price becomes clear Krabat is entrenched too deeply to be able to simply flee ...
Even knowing the book from childhood, this movie drew me in very much, because it is made in a very skillful way. Music and effects support the plot without ever running it over, and the acting was impressive (it does not happen very often, but I think I am about to find a favorite actor - even a German one ;). In my opinion this movie is really worth watching, however, as it is a German production I do not know when/if it will be released in English as well. Official release in Germany is 9th October 2008.[i just found this.... and was indeed surprised! so even if the film is not dubbed in another language, it is still a very good book to be read.]
