Innocence

The key goes in the lock, the coffin opens and there is the naked six-year-old Iris. The new world into which she is born is comprised of a rural school building in a walled, fairy-tale park. Disobedience is punished and anyone who tries to flee has to stay forever. – Childlike innocence and the burden of growing up are not unknown film subjects, but the way in which Hadzihalilovic breaks with the traditional approach to these themes is innovative. Innocence is a magic, poetic dream with elements of theatre, psychological thriller and a trace of horror. With very stylised camera work, the mood rocks gently between innocent and sinister. The mystery unfolds meticulously and consistently into a grand metaphorical plot. (Sandra den Hamer)