Art Smitten: Reviews - 2017

Toni Erdmann is a German-Austrian comedy directed, written, and co-produced by Maren Ade. It centres on the relationship between the eccentric prankster father, Winfried Conradi (played by Peter Simonischek), and his stressed, work-a-holic daughter, Ines (played by Sandra Hüller). Spurred by the death of his dog, and the loss of his piano students, Winifried decides to spontaneously visit Ines, and thus essentially begins interfering in her life through pranks, questions, and inopportune comments that Ines fears will ruin her business partnerships. Winifried agrees to go home, but doesn’t, instead appearing again as his life-coach alter ego Toni Erdmann, and continues to push Ines to her limits. The film captured my attention because although a comedy, with absurd situations, the acting on the whole was admirably understated. The humour of the film came through the wittiness of the script, combined with situations that the actors let speak for themselves. This understated acting also contributed to