[projekktor id=’26822′]

Maren Ade is taking the world by storm with her film Toni Erdmann. The award winning German director brings to the screen a thought provoking film about an aging practical joker, Winfried (Peter Simonischek), who decides to visit his high-strung adult daughter, Ines (Sandra Hüller), unannounced. When the initial visit doesn’t go as planned, he decides to stick around and infiltrates Ines’ business circles posing as an influential life coach called Toni Erdmann much to the horror of his daughter. According to Marren:

“Winfried’s impulsive transformation is a bold attempt to break out of the mold of the father-daughter relationship. “Toni Erdmann” is born out of desperation. Humor is often a way of coping with things, and as such it is always also a product of pain. Winfried is unable to get through to his daughter any other way. He tried to redefine his relationship with her as a father and failed, and now he’s at a loss, torn between his desire for more closeness with Ines and the resentment he feels towards her. The balance of power between them shifted long ago. Winfried finds a way out of this dilemma with the brash offer he makes Ines in the guise of Toni. Humor is his only weapon, and he starts using it to the hilt. That means playing a much tougher game, and since Ines is a tough cookie herself, he’s suddenly speaking a language she understands.”

A 3-hour German comedy might seem like a daunting cinematic experience but Toni Erdmann is far from daunting. It’s brazen, it’s weird, it’s honest and most of all its enjoyable and funny. A clear favourite in the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language film, Toni Erdmann sees a limited release in select Canadian cities.

Toni Erdmann is rated 14A.