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| A Hidden Life | |
|---|---|
| Name | A Hidden Life |
| Director | Terrence Malick |
| Producer | Sarah Green, Nicolas Gonda, Dede Gardner |
| Writer | Terrence Malick |
| Starring | August Diehl, Valerie Pachner, Bruno Ganz |
| Music | James Newton Howard |
| Cinematography | Jörg Widmer, Christopher Doyle |
| Editing | Tom Cross |
| Studio | MK2 Productions, Plan B Entertainment |
| Distributor | Fox Searchlight Pictures |
| Released | 2019 |
| Runtime | 174 minutes |
| Country | Austria, France, Germany, United States |
| Language | German, English |
A Hidden Life
A Hidden Life is a 2019 biographical drama film directed and written by Terrence Malick about the life of Austrian farmer and conscientious objector Franz Jägerstätter. The film stars August Diehl as Jägerstätter and Valerie Pachner as his wife Franziska, chronicling their moral struggle during the rise of Nazism and the Second World War. It intertwines personal, theological, and political elements, set against European landscapes and framed by Malick's meditative cinematic style.
The narrative follows Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian peasant from Sankt Radegund, Upper Austria who refuses to swear allegiance to Adolf Hitler after the Anschluss with Nazi Germany. Franz's decision estranges him from neighbors, clashes with parish figures linked to Pope Pius XII, and leads to multiple arrests by authorities tied to the Wehrmacht and Gestapo. Interleaved sequences depict Franz's marriage to Franziska, their children, correspondence with pacifists and theologians including letters referencing figures such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer and thinkers associated with Catholic resistance movements. The film moves from quotidian farm labor to courtroom scenes relating to the People's Court (Nazi Germany) and culminates in an execution at a military prison tied to the broader machinery of the Third Reich and the wartime tribunals presided over by officers linked to the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht.
The film situates Jägerstätter's story within crises triggered by the Treaty of Versailles aftermath and the expansionism of Nazi Germany leading into World War II. It engages with resistance traditions exemplified by figures such as Sophie Scholl, Hans Scholl, Willi Graf, and networks like the White Rose and the July 20 plot conspirators including Claus von Stauffenberg. Thematically, Malick probes conscience against state coercion, invoking theological debates associated with Martin Luther, Thomas Aquinas, St. Augustine, and twentieth-century moralists such as Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. The film evokes cultural touchstones including Austrian National Socialism opposition, rural communities impacted by policies from Reich Ministry of the Interior, and the broader human-rights discourse later framed by instruments like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Cinematic allusions link to films addressing similar themes such as Schindler's List, The Passion of Joan of Arc, Das Boot, and The Last Emperor.
Terrence Malick developed the screenplay drawing on historical records, letters, and biographies that reference archives in Linz, Vienna, and collections housed by institutions like the Austrian State Archives and the German Resistance Memorial Center. Produced by companies including Plan B Entertainment and MK2 Productions, the shoot took place across locales associated with Jägerstätter's life, including regions in Upper Austria, and studios in Munich and Salzburg. Cinematography involved collaborators such as Jörg Widmer and contributions from Christopher Doyle, with editing by Tom Cross and music by James Newton Howard. Casting brought together performers connected to European film traditions reminiscent of actors who worked with directors like Werner Herzog, Michael Haneke, Ingmar Bergman, and Carl Theodor Dreyer. The production engaged craftspeople and consultants versed in liturgical practice, agrarian history, and wartime jurisprudence influenced by precedents such as the Nuremberg Trials.
The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2019 where it competed for the Palme d'Or alongside films by directors like Bong Joon-ho, Pedro Almodóvar, and Ken Loach. Distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures, it opened in international markets including screenings at the Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, and retrospectives at institutions such as the British Film Institute and the Museum of Modern Art. Critics compared Malick's approach to auteurs like Andrei Tarkovsky, Stanley Kubrick, and Akira Kurosawa, generating discussions in outlets linked to festivals, academic journals, and cultural bodies such as the European Film Academy. Reception ranged from accolades for its cinematography and moral seriousness, echoing praise similar to that received by films like The Tree of Life, to critiques over pacing and narrative opacity familiar from debates over Malick's earlier works.
Scholars and critics analyzed the film through lenses associated with ethics, theology, and film theory, referencing works by Hannah Arendt, Emmanuel Levinas, Paul Tillich, and commentators from Film Quarterly and the Journal of Religion and Film. Debates considered parallels with historical portrayals like Downfall and The Diary of Anne Frank, and with resistance narratives in literature from Czesław Miłosz and Rainer Maria Rilke. The film contributed to renewed interest in Jägerstätter's canonization process within the Roman Catholic Church and discussions at institutions such as the Vatican and the Pontifical Council for Culture. It influenced contemporary filmmakers and curators at venues like the Berlin International Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, and university programs at Harvard University and Oxford University exploring conscience under authoritarianism. Over time, the film has been cited in studies of cinematic ethics alongside works by André Bazin, Sergei Eisenstein, Laura Mulvey, and Gilles Deleuze, securing its place in 21st-century dialogues on art, witness, and moral courage.
Category:2019 films