'Murderer's House' - University of Victoria
'Murderer's House' - University of Victoria
'Murderer's House' - University of Victoria
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the viewer that this story will happen in Germany during the Third Reich and deal with a<br />
mother figure?<br />
H.S.-B.: Yeah, right. Exactly.<br />
R.R.: So, some critics have said that by using the Brecht poem at the beginning <strong>of</strong> the<br />
film, you are equating or saying your mother‟s history represents the history <strong>of</strong> all<br />
German women during the war period and Economic Miracle. How do you answer these<br />
critics?<br />
H.S.-B.: It‟s not all…I just confronted the poem <strong>of</strong> Brecht with my personal experience<br />
with my own mother. But, <strong>of</strong> course, this personal experience, as you said, is set in this<br />
setting that the Brecht poem gives, so it is an exchange between the Brecht poem and my<br />
own experience. It was my own experience, which is told in the context <strong>of</strong> a fictional<br />
film, it is not a documentary; it tells a story. But <strong>of</strong> course, one idea <strong>of</strong> Brecht that is very<br />
important for the film is that Brecht wanted to create reflection in the spectator, and the<br />
voice-over is also a means to stimulate reflection. And, if you remember, to underline<br />
this, the first image <strong>of</strong> the film is a reflection, it is the reflection <strong>of</strong> a swastika in the dark<br />
water. So in a way, this is a means <strong>of</strong> a film image showing that this [film] is a<br />
reflection, in the double sense <strong>of</strong> the word.<br />
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