‘The Teachers’ Lounge’ Review: Leonie Benesch Delivers Scorching Performance In Riveting And Pertinent German Oscar Entry

deadline.com:

The official German Oscar entry for Best International Feature is an insular, pulse-pounding thriller set within the confines of a school that, for cinematic purposes, doubles as a microcosm of society in general circa 2023 where facts don’t matter, misinformation is rampant, suspicions run hot, divisions run deep, racism still rears its ugly head, and no one can be quite sure where, and even if they want to, fit in.

A critical hit beginning at Berlin, and then winning much talk at Telluride, Toronto and AFI festivals, this fascinating movie is a Blackboard Jungle of a different stripe, but still one that puts a critical finger on our educational institutions by way of the human scope.

That it is shot (by cinematographer Judity Kaufmann) in a claustrophobic 4:3 aspect ratio only adds to the tension created by co-writer (with Johannes Duncker) and director Ilker Çatak (a past student Academy Award winner), the latter pair incorporating some of their own experiences as schoolmates, but on a much more dangerous and explosive canvas here.

Carla Nowak is the kind of idealistic teacher arriving to her new school and seventh grade class, eager to make her mark, that we have seen in many movies from To Sir With Love to Up the Down Staircase and countless others.