Die andere Seite

Movies about contagion, even the most humanistic ones, are almost always told from the perspective of the healthy minority trying to evade the infected. In Mariko Minoguchi’s harrowing DIE ANDERE SEITE, our point of view is radically shifted. A deadly pandemic has ravaged Europe, and while most people who contract the virus die, there is a small group of mostly asymptomatic carriers. These people are global pariahs, with the military forcibly isolating them in camps. Hanna (Nina Hoss) is seen running from these forces, trying to avoid capture while also making sure to isolate herself so as not to infect others. DIE ANDERE SEITE is almost wordless for its first half-hour, as Hanna simply tries to remain alive and free. She receives unexpected help from a woman (Barbara Petritsch) who has lost her entire family. Hanna eventually finds her way to a tent city where other carriers attempt to form a community while maintaining a two-metre distance. One of them, Lila (Precious Mariam Sanusi), is pregnant and requires assistance which Hanna, a doctor in her previous life, attempts to provide. DIE ANDERE SEITE is a film of urgency and physicality, anchored by Hoss’s staggering performance. (Michael Sicinski)

In the presence of Mariko Minoguchi and on October 23rd of Nina Hoss.

Mariko Minoguchi (selection): MEIN ENDE. DEIN ANFANG. (2019), ZEIT VERBRECHEN (2024)