Nothing Bad Can Happen

Nothing Bad Can Happen, directed by Katrin Gebbe, is a raw and uncompromising 2013 German drama film that grapples with difficult topics of faith, suffering, and human capability for cruelty. The film features gripping performances by Julius Feldmeier, Sascha Alexander Gersak, and Annika Kuhl. It premiered at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival and was selected as one of the German entries for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards.

The film's narrative pivots around Tore (played by Julius Feldmeier), a young and naive Christian convert who is part of a punk-anarchist Jesus movement known as the "Jesus Freaks". Tore is firmly committed to his religion and undeterred faith, believing in love, kindness and miracles even amidst the bleak and anarchistic world he inhabits. He fervently seeks a life following the teachings of Jesus and frequently prays for both divine guidance and spiritual strength.

A series of events leads Tore to cross paths with the outwardly affable yet sinister family man, Benno (Sascha Alexander Gersak). An immediate bond is formed after Tore manages to 'heal' Benno's old van through prayer, leading Benno to invite Tore into his family home. Joyful at the chance of having found a new family and viewing it as god-ordained, Tore readily accepts.

The initial warmth of Benno's family, including his wife Astrid (Annika Kuhl), dissolves as Tore is gradually drawn into a nightmare-esque domestic reality. The audience is drawn along with Tore on his journey, which quickly spirals into suffering and abuse. This is brought to life through the raw and piercing performances of the film's leads.

Throughout the maelstrom of torment, Tore naïvely takes on the role of a modern-day Job, steadfastly adhering to his faith even when subjected to unimaginable cruelty. He truly believes in the mantra that 'nothing bad can happen' if he stays unflinchingly devoted to Jesus's teachings.

Gebbe’s debut feature is not a tale for the faint-hearted, showcasing a bleak and unsettling narrative that is likely to stay with audiences long after the credits roll. Despite the relentless hardship, Nothing Bad Can Happen offers moments of poignancy, presenting a profound discourse on faith, love, and sacrifice amidst adversity.

The title of the film underpins its entire narrative, providing a stark contrast to the horrors that Tore experiences. It’s an exploration of how a tenacious belief system can help an individual to endure, even in the face of immense suffering. However, it’s also an exploration of how such beliefs can be exploited and manipulated.

The film's cinematography is another highlight, enhancing the film's unsettling atmosphere with a contrast of shots that alternate between the dreary, everyday life settings and vibrant punk rock aesthetics. The score further embeds a sense of hopelessness with an unsettling rhythmic quality that mirrors the oppressive environment that Tore finds himself in.

Feldmeier's performance as Tore is particularly notable in this film. His embodiment of an innocent yet fiercely devoted Christian is poignant and distressingly believable. His gradual realization and acceptance of the atrocities committed against him are haunting and heart-rending in equal measures.

Gersak gives a chilling performance as the opportunistic and malicious Benno. His switch from friendly host to sadistic tormentor is so smooth, it lies in the uncanny valley, unsettling viewers. Gersak's portrayal of the imposing menace makes the skin crawl, reminding us that horrific monsters are more often in the form of ordinary humans, rather than supernatural beings.

Similarly, Annika Kuhl brilliantly captures the uneasy mixture of complicity, despair and dissociation of a woman stuck in a cycle of domestic and psychological abuse.

This movie is a challenging watch, both for its thematic contents and also for the unblinking lens through which it observes the breakdown of human relationships, faith, and hope. Nothing Bad Can Happen delves into darkness and brutality, yet offers light in the form of an exploration of faith and human resilience, making this unnerving movie a thought-provoking and necessary watching experience.