Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

How sad is this?

Best movie of this year hands down!

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Volker Schlöndorff became one of the doyens of New German Cinema in the 1960s and 1970s, along with Wim Wenders and Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Schlöndorff's work included "The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum", "The Tin Drum" and "Die Fälschung" ("Circle of Deceit" in English). This one casts Bruno Ganz as a journalist sent to Lebanon to report on the civil war there. The movie never takes sides in the war, instead focusing on the journalist's realization that it's hard to be neutral in a situation where all sides are shooting at each other. Even more impressive is that they filmed on location in war-torn Beirut. Apparently they filmed in "safe" sections of the city but could see evidence of the fighting. Beirut, once known as the Paris of the Middle East, became a proxy war between Israel and its Maronite allies, and Syria and its Shiite allies, and other factions. As bad as things were when they filmed "Circle of Deceit", Lebanon had yet to see the Sabra and Shatila massacres (when Phalangists massacred Palestinian refugees).Anyway, it's a really good, really intense movie. The ethical questions surrounding reporting on war are probably some of the most important, and the movie does a fine job looking at them. I recommend it.

Lacking even a token gesture of Hollywood gloss, this inside look at the Lebanese civil war is strong stuff indeed, which may be why it never found an audience (in this country at least) when first released. The filmmakers made use of actual Beirut locations to follow the brutal, ambiguous account of one journalist's education into the abject moral poverty of violence, and the documentary realism of the background lends a frightening authority to the subject. It's difficult at times to tell just what is real and what is staged, and the essential nihilism of the conflict is further reinforced by the film's detachment from any political sympathies, although there's something uncomfortable in the idea of a German citizen pondering the immorality of genocide. We're led to assume his private and professional ethics are being tested in the face of such extreme bloodshed, but it's hard to avoid making deeper historical connections.

A German reporter Georg Laschen (Bruno Ganz) arrives in Beirut, Lebanon with a photographer Hoffmann (Jerzy Skolimowski), aiming to write an article on the inflammatory situation there. The city has more or less been turned into a huge war zone where bombs and gunfire are ever-present especially during the dark hours of the day. Laschen's own personal motives for accepting such a dangerous job are related to his frustration about his troubled marital situation back in Germany; something he tries to overcome by striking up a relationship with Ariane (Hanna Schygulla), a white woman living in Beirut. Despite witnessing many atrocities, or perhaps because of it, Laschen struggles to achieve an understanding of the motives of the warring parties who both claim to fight for peace and freedom and accuse each other of barbaric acts of terror.The film was shot on location in Beirut which guarantees a very authentic look to the damaged city. Many of the "action" scenes also look very effective and the sense of danger is well created, even though the main focus is given to psychological things like Laschen's attempts to grasp the situation, not thrilling bomb attacks and firefights. Sometimes the pacing feels a little slow, but the acting is good throughout. Especially the brooding Ganz and the pragmatic Skolimowski play well together, bringing life to their very different characters.The most notable sentiment present in the film is the complete lack of optimism. The war is portrayed as completely inhumane and unheroic waste of life: the photographs and scenes depicting unspeakable mistreatment of civilians stay in the viewer's mind for a long time. The film doesn't offer a hopeful or positive message on either of its two levels, general or personal – no solution for either the war or Laschen's own anxiety seems possible. "Our only real chance to fight the violence is to not let it start in the first place" is the vibe I'm getting out of the film – an effective piece of cinema.

This is a really excellent film. I did find the use of the war-torn Beirut as a "backdrop" ethically troubling. To their credit, however, the director/crew also wrestled with the conflict between filming and helping people caught in a desperate situation. I base this latter statement on the DVD containing interviews and extra features. Hanna Scygulla and Bruno Ganz are outstanding. Possible spoiler?: Their interaction in the wonderful house as war rages around them leaves an indelible impression. The characters are complex as reflects the complexity of the situation and locale. Spoiler: Hanna S's decision to adopt a child she encounters is particularly nuanced and affecting.