A disfigured concentration-camp survivor (Nina Hoss), unrecognizable after facial reconstruction surgery, searches ravaged postwar Berlin for the husband (Ronald Zehrfeld) who might have betrayed her to the Nazis.
A gripping study of treachery, identity and survival.
If it fails to consistently transcend its narrative troubles Phoenix does, on occasion, take flight.
Phoenix is a compelling exploration of one woman’s sense of self and the seldom discussed immediate post-war years in Germany.
A Berlin thriller with hints of Hitchcock and plenty of plot twists.
Reconstructive surgery could never come anywhere near the convincing results shown here: not in 1945 – and not in 2015, come to that. The flaw is fatal, and the fantasy crumbles.
Petzold builds the film to a stunningly executed finale that serves as a potent metaphor for the way the performance required by denial can’t hope to suppress the truth from revealing itself.
Plot implausibilities are overcome in this second world war drama thanks to the terrific Nina Hoss as a disfigured woman who gains a new face.
General release. Check local listings for show times.