How well do we really know our parents or children? This question lies at the heart of Maren Ade's Oscar nominated social comedy Toni Erdmann.
Peter Simonischek plays Winifred Conradi, a fifty-something man whose concern about his daughter's wellbeing finds him adopting the alter-ego Toni Erdmann to bring levity into her life. Unfortunately, Ines (played by the brilliant Sandra Hüller) is not so impressed with her father's antics, especially when it impacts her work.
Featuring a series of hilarious set-pieces – including a jaw-dropping rendition of 'The Greatest Love of All' and a dinner party that becomes increasingly surreal – Toni Erdmann once and for all settles the argument over whether German comedy can travel. Maren Ade's brilliant film perfectly balances comedy with genuine concern for the way we live our lives.
★★★★★ "Finds excruciating humour and great pathos in a surreal collision between father and daughter" - Mark Kermode's Film of the Week, The Observer
★★★★★ "Funny, perceptive, alive to life’s richness and absurdities and in its final moments, absolutely devastating" - Ian Freer, Empire
15
159 minutes
2017
Drama, Comedy
Germany
English, German, Romanian
English
Thunderbird Releasing