Courtroom drama offers gripping tale

Did she or didn’t she? Ah, that is the question the film "Anatomy of a Fall" will answer … or not! 

The 2023 French courtroom drama will be shown at the Panida on Sunday, April 14, at a matinee at 2 p.m. and an evening show at 7 p.m.

The plot is simple. Novelist Sandra Voyter (played by Sandra Hüller) is married to a university lecturer Samuel Maleski (played by Samuel Theis), and they are staying at a mountain chalet with their visually impaired son, Daniel (played by Milo Machado-Graner). When Daniel returns to the mountain chalet from a walk with his guide dog Snoop, he finds his father dead in the snow from an apparent fall from the upper floor of the chalet.

Was Samuel’s fall an accident? Did Sandra push him? The film presents layers of a complex relationship as the plot moves to the courtroom where Sandra is on trial for the murder of her husband. Eventually, the couple's son Daniel will take the stand, but what will his testimony reveal? Possibly the dog Snoop should be put on the witness stand as well!

"Anatomy of a Fall" premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2023 where it won several awards. At this year’s Academy Awards, the film received five nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Justine Triet), Best Actress (Sandra Hüller), Best Original Screenplay (Justine Triet), and Best Editing (Laurent Sénéchal). Triet took home the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

Besides being nominated for her performance in this film, Hüller was also recognized for playing Hedwig, the wife of Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Hess, in the critically acclaimed "The Zone of Interest," an Oscar nominee for Best International Feature Film.

"Anatomy of a Fall" is sponsored by the Heartwood Center. Tickets are $5.

So, head to the Panida on Sunday the 14th and become a member of the jury to decide Sandra’s fate.