Time of the Wolf (2004)

Disappointingly passive film from everyone's favorite Austrian firebrand, Michael Haneke. Formally, it's incontrovertably awesome -- Haneke does much here to further my estimation of hiim as the single most visually talented man in world cinema. However, here he seems to have spent all his innovation on his images, as the tight control he exerts squeezes any urgency or passion out of his scenario. It's a stark and minimal post-apocalyptic tale, which you think would be thematically perfect for this violence-obsessed director, but Haneke's exacting setups appear to be designed to distance us from the material to the point where it's difficult to care. The film, already a slow mover, reaches a halt by the time Isabelle Huppert and her brood reach the train station. However, the last ten minutes redeem it -- an attempt at sacrifice leads to an astonishing and potent ending where, for maybe the first time in his career, Haneke holds out the notion of hope. It's a beautiful moment, and it makes the uneven film it's attached to worth seeing. (Just barely.)

Grade: B-