Drama
France,Germany,Austria
Hope is the third and final film in the Paradise Trilogy, directed by Austrian filmmaker Ulrich Seidl. The film follows the story of a 13-year-old girl named Melanie who is attending a summer weight-loss camp in the Austrian countryside while her mother goes on a trip to Kenya.
At the camp, Melanie is put on a strict diet and exercise regime supervised by a tough, tattooed trainer and a creepy doctor who prescribes questionable weight-loss pills. The other teenagers at the camp are also struggling with their weight and their self-esteem, and together they try to find ways to have fun, rebel against the rules, and deal with their conflicting emotions.
As Melanie spends more time at the camp, she begins to develop a crush on the older doctor, who is more than 40 years her senior. Despite the obvious power dynamic and the doctor's inappropriate behavior towards her, Melanie becomes infatuated with him and tries to pursue a relationship, even though she doesn't fully understand the consequences of her actions.
The film explores themes of adolescence, desire, power, and abuse in a nuanced and unsettling way, shining a light on the dark side of the weight-loss industry and the complicated emotions that can arise in relationships with significant power imbalances. The acting is superb, particularly newcomer Melanie Lenz, who gives a nuanced and deeply felt performance as the young protagonist. Overall, Paradise: Hope is a thought-provoking and disturbing conclusion to the trilogy, and a powerful statement on the dangers of longing for something you cannot have.
