Four Minutes (Vier Minuten)
A painful past can manifest itself in a variety of ways in different people: anger, withdrawal, abrasiveness and sublimation. In Chris Kraus’s intriguing drama Four Minutes, Traude Kruger, a stern elderly piano teacher, played brilliantly by Monica Bleibtreu, (whose similarly talented son, Moritz, Bleibtreu is currently starring in Female Agents), has taught at a women’s prison for many years. Always searching for potential new students, she convinces a talented young prisoner to take lessons.
Traude’s pain has forced her to dedicate her life to music, and keep her emotions at a comfortable distance. Her new pupil, Jenny (Hannah Herpzsprung) is aggressive and difficult.
Despite Traude’s disclosure that she finds Jenny despicable, she is determined to teach her. Some years prior to her imprisonment, Jenny was a prodigious young pianist. Her life took an unexpected turn.
What has caused Jenny’s aggression, and why has Traude decided to spend her life working with prisoners? Themes of moral ambiguity, the dichotomy between righteousness and the law and redemption are explored here.
During the course of the film, via Traude’s flashbacks and Jenny’s gradual disclosures, the two women discover more and more about each other, and with that knowledge, comes understanding.
Kraus has excelled in creating an emotionally enticing film that is free from mawkish indulgence. Though it becomes a tad sentimental towards the end, we can at least see how the relationship between the two main characters, and the significance of the musical goal towards which they invest their collective efforts, have developed.
Four Minutes takes a little while to engage the viewer, but rewards persistence. An additional reward is the marvellous score.