PARADISE: Faith

Synopsis

In PARADISE: Faith Ulrich Seidl explores what it means to carry the cross. For Anna Maria, a single woman in her 50s, paradise lies with Jesus. She devotes her summer vacation to doing missionary work, carrying from door to door a 15"-high statue of the Wandering Mother of God. One day, when after years of absence her husband, an Egyptian and Muslim, comes home, her life goes off its rails. Hymns and prayers are now joined by fighting. PARADISE: Faith recounts the stations of the cross of a marriage and the longing for love. It is the second segment of Ulrich Seidl's PARADISE Trilogy. At its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival the film sparked a major scandal because of a scene involving masturbation.

Credits

With support from: Austrian Film Institute, Vienna Film Fund, Land Niederösterreich, Eurimages, Centre National de la Cinématographie | In collaboration with: ORF Film-/Fernsehabkommen, WDR, Arte, Degeto, Arte France Cinema

Co-producers: Tatfilm, Parisienne de Production

Director's statement

"In the course of my work on Jesus, You Know (2003), a film about intimacy with God, we discovered that in Austria (and probably elsewhere, too) there are thousands of so-called Wandering Mother of God statues in circulation. They are carried by pious Catholics - mostly women - and taken into homes and apartments. People who accept one of these Mother of Gods expect healing effects for their physical and psychological afflictions. Aside from this being a fantastic story for a film, the house visits were ideal to tell 'small stories' within a larger story, a film structure that I have used ever since my first theatrical feature Good News." – Ulrich Seidl

Reviews

"Both Ms. Hofstätter and Mr. Saleh - this is his first role - are brilliantly convincing, to an almost alarming degree."
The New York Times

"A disarmingly funny and tender examination of sex and religion."
Indiewire

"Grotesquely funny, shocking, cruel, harrowing, or all of the above."
Hollywood Reporter

"Startling imagery, ambiguous morality and ruthless black humor."
Variety

"Radical in both in its form and content, Ulrich Seidl's film aims far beyond the obvious provocation of its ruthless scenes. It is a reflection on the excrescences of religious worship, consisting of impressively ascetic images."
Arte

"With its formal clarity and emotional force, Seidl's film is in a different league from the Lido competitors we have seen so far."
Die Presse

"Regardless whether you reject or admire their implacability, Seidl's movies are events, and PARADISE: Faith especially more so."
Der Tagesspiegel

Awards | Festivals

Awards
"Best Actress" for Maria Hofstätter, Austrian Film Prize, 2014
"Best Austrian Film - Papierener Gustl", Austrian Film Prize, 2014
"Grand Diagonale Acting Prize'' for Maria Hofstätter, Austria, 2013
"Best European Sound Design", European Film Awards of the European Film Academy for Matz Müller and Erik Mischijew, Berlin, 2013
"Grand Jury Prize", Venice International Film Festival, 2012
"Premio CinemAvvenire", Venice International Film Festival, 2012
"Best screenplay & Eurimages Prize (Best Co-production)", Seville, 2012

Downloads

Pressbook PDF: english/italian | german/english
Pressphotos: 10x18,5 cm / 300dpi / jpg