In the seclusion of a mountain village in Uri, even a Willisauer is a stranger
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Loading... - ellis maisie
- 02 Sep 2022
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You can hear a Heu-Juuz in the feature film "Drii Winter". But Michael Koch, who was born in Lucerne, tells his story of love and death in Isenthal, a community in Uri at 780 meters above sea level in a secluded side valley, devoid of mountain romance. It is the love story between the innkeeper's daughter Anna and the alpine helper Marco. One counts in winters up there, hence the film title.
In recent years, a number of films, especially documentaries, have conjured up life on the alp and a folk culture that is disappearing. In most cases dressed in idyllic images. A hard work but happy life. "Cows on the roof" by Aldo Gugolz was the big exception.
If you can't save a sick animal, it's slaughtered
The work on the alp through the seasons goes without big words: haymaking in steep terrain with a scythe; the cover ammunition is dumped; if the veterinarian cannot save the sick animal, it has to be taken down to the butcher in the valley.
Once Marco and Anna are driving down the narrow, winding road on their motorbike. She holds on to her Marco. Happiness couldn't be more perfect. The tragic twist is not long in coming.
A big guy with a soft face
It's no coincidence that this Marco looks a little like a Muni: a massive guy with a "bull's back" - and a gentle face. While the others sit at the regulars' table in the pub and drink beer, Marco sits with a glass of iced tea closer to Anna and the door to their shared apartment, where Anna's daughter Julia sleeps. Marco comes from the lowlands, from «Willisöi». One is skeptical, even when Julia calls him Dädi.
When a farm animal is sick, it is slaughtered, it has become useless. That's how Marco feels when he gets sick. If you don't "chrampfed," you're useless. Up there you are closer to nature, but does the human-animal metaphor need to be so detailed?
Michael Koch's name has been remembered since "Marija" at the latest
Working with amateur actors gives «Drii Winter» something documentary. The unusual stylistic device of having a choir comment on what is happening presents the images as an illusion. At the same time, the chorus strengthens the emotional bond with Marco when his fictional fellow players doubt him. In contrast to the images, which restrict the actors, the film leaves a lot of space for the audience. Read More…
