The Trial of Hein Review: A Village on Trial

A man arrives by boat on a remote German fishing island and says he's Hein, home after fifteen years. Nobody believes him, not even his mother, whose dementia has her recognizing him one minute and losing him the next. So the village puts him on trial to decide who he is.

The best choice is the set: every house is just two facades with no roof, so every "indoor" scene plays outside, exposed to the elements. I read it as Hein's incomplete memory. The director said it's about how small communities leave you with nowhere to hide. Either way, it's Dogville as an outdoor stage play, and it's beautifully shot.

The tension builds as you question whether he's an imposter or the village is lying. The director said it took ten years to get made, and it shows. One of the better films I've seen at the festival so far.