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BERLINALE 2022 Competition

Review: A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love

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- BERLINALE 2022: Finally, thanks to Nicolette Krebitz, we have a romantic comedy featuring a healthy dose of mugging and characters with a “life impediment”

Review: A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love
Sophie Rois and Milan Herms in A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love

It’s better to get this out of the way really quickly, as Harold and Maude comparisons are bound to bounce off Nicolette Krebitz’s latest film like a bunch of dazed insects. Yes, in the Berlinale competition title A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love [+see also:
trailer
interview: Nicolette Krebitz
film profile
]
, the female protagonist is significantly older than her male love interest, a very 1990s-looking kid with a centre parting. They don’t seem to care, though, so neither will we, as this little film is already delightfully odd without mentions of gaping age gaps.

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In its best moments, the whole thing feels like one of those classic romantic films from the 1980s, featuring John Cusack and silly grand gestures, but also completely bonkers subplots involving someone’s dad stealing money from the elderly, for example – subplots that everyone just chose to forget. Here, you get love at first mugging, as actress Anna (Sophie Rois) literally catches a whiff of a young man who is stealing her purse. It’s a very sensual feeling, one she will recount later on to her friend Udo Kier, cast in a rare “normal” role this time (see also: Asia Argento in Dark Glasses [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
).

It’s all very telling because Anna seems to struggle with sexuality a little. Always dressed modestly, she once lost it on national TV when male presenters giggled appreciatively over photos of her body, deeming it quite snackable for “a woman her age”. She also doesn’t like it when a fellow actor grabs her in order to act out an emotion. But later, when she is asked to help out a boy as a speech therapist, she gets to see her mugger again. Adrian (Milan Herms), it is said here, has a “life impediment, not a speech impediment”, but they just keep on going, learning that “every vowel has a place in your body”. After statements like that, it’s no wonder sparks fly left, right and centre.

To be honest, it’s all rather sweet, as watching romances between two broken people is what makes winters seem shorter. Anna is lonely, that’s obvious, but she also spends way too much time in her head, whiling away entire nights imagining possible break-in scenarios. “Whenever a household appliance breaks, I am overcome by existential dread,” she says, and to be honest, she actually has a point. It doesn’t come as a huge surprise, then, that it’s actually Adrian who seems more comfortable with this new attraction; he also doesn’t question it much. When he plays a ridiculous magic trick on Anna and Nina Simone suddenly erupts out of nowhere, it’s clear – they will no longer fight it. So they do what people in love always do, which is go to France.

Is that escape really necessary? Not for the story, as it comes across as a bit flat, but Krebitz’s heroine seems to need it. In new, judgement-free surroundings, she can fully commit to the role of a lover – always the actress – and feel like one of those women in the trashy novels that she would probably never admit to reading. Or a star in a French remake of The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone. As a couple, they also keep working on those vowels, especially on “A”, which is clearly the best one. “First Anna, then Adrian, the way it should be,” states the indifferent voice-over, narrating their bedroom-based vocal activities. What a weird, occasionally sexy, occasionally ridiculous film this is.

A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love was produced by Komplizen Film (Germany), and co-produced by Kazak Productions (France), kineo Filmproduktion (Germany), SWR (Germany) and ARTE (Germany). Its world sales are handled by The Match Factory.

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Photogallery 13/02/2022: Berlinale 2022 - A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love

34 pictures available. Swipe left or right to see them all.

Jonas Dornbach, Janine Jackowski, Nicolette Krebitz, Milan Herms, Sophie Rois, Nicolas Bridet
© 2022 Dario Caruso for Cineuropa - dario-caruso.fr, @studio.photo.dar, Dario Caruso

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