By Daniel Betancourt
It’s summer of 1979 in Germany, and three generations of siblings gather at the family summer house for the first time since the passing of their beloved great grandmother. Just as the family begins to get reacquainted, the time to decide what to do with the land gets closer and closer.
Sonja Kröner’s debut feature film The Garden (Sommerhäuser) will send you down memory lane as each scene unfolds subtly through the experience of every single family member with fine detail. The scoreless film holds you through its excellent performances & dynamic set design, making every scene feel like a memory.
Lucky enough, I was able to experience watching this film surrounded by a very full & elderly German audience whose nostalgic laughs could be felt in harmony with the pace of the film at the 35th Annual Miami Film Festival. TheGarden feels like a cinematic photo album that you know all the stories to. Kröner undeniably proved herself to be a masterful storyteller through the clear telling of her childhood summer, and the audience was grateful for it.
As a student, the film felt like an observational documentary almost. While most of the cinematography was quite traditional, the decision to go develop film without a score was bold yet it allowed the family experiences to be the only thing you held & reflected on as an audience. The Garden serves as a modern-day 1 hour & 37-minute work of art that teaches us the true value of enjoying moments with our family.
MIAMI FILM FESTIVAL EXPERIENCE 