The White Ribbon

In the last class, we watched the film, The White Ribbon. The movie is set in Germany and it explores the life of a German society pre-World War I. The thing that grabbed my attention in the film was the class division. There was the opening scene where the doctor is knocked from his horse after his horse trips on a wire. The wire must have been put there on purpose and I am eager to find out who is guilty.

The doctor’s incident may have been forgotten if it were not for the events of the celebration. The baron’s crops were destroyed by a poor farmer’s son and the son of the baron was taken and beaten. There is a clear push against the higher members in a society and this division will probably prove to be an interesting one in the future.

Religion, as usual, will surely be an important factor in the film. It will be interesting to see if the religious leaders in the town are portrayed in a positive or negative manner. The good nature of the people in the town would lead the viewer to believe that religion or at least the concept of neighborly behavior is important.

Also, I am not exactly sure what is going on with the children in the main family depicted in the film. It is clear that the children are up to some kind of mischief, but the nature of their actions has not been disclosed yet. The suppression of the children’s independence is something that I will watch for as the film progresses. On a more pleasant not, the family does give an interesting look at the harshness and kindness of German families.

Lastly, the relationship between the school teacher and the woman who was in charge of the baron’s younger children was predictable. Hopefully, there will be some kind of development of those characters that goes beyond the normal romantic relationship.