"As far as the director is concerned, this topic seems rightly secondary, as the main focus is clearly the actions and reactions of Michaela and her surroundings to this problem. A seemingly objective sociological character study, an observational account which takes an individuals story that can subsequently be interpreted in a universal way, applicable to many varying topics and situations."

That's correct. I'm not sure, then, why in your earlier comments you seemed unsatisfied with the lack of details regarding her illness. I think Requiem's attention to Michaela complex psychological behavior, and not just her "physical" illness, is one of its strong points. (I'm also glad that Schmid didn't explicitly take religion and medicine to task, which is what we normally see in these sort of films.)

"The weakness of his direction is thus a personal auteurist approach which is badly disguised, making the film resemble rather an experiment than a focused attempt."

Would you mind expanding on this a bit? Thanks.

"An affective camerawork which tends to point out obtrusevily the unsubtle direction at some points, while its images become interchangable and the direction seems clueless at others."

I didn't had a problem with the hand-held camerawork; if anything it brought certain immediacy to the proceedings. And as I've mentioned elsewhere, I was quite impressed by the economy of the screenplay and the editing. This subject matter is often approached in a sensational manner, but for the most part Requiem is an exception. (Last year's The Exorcism of Emily Rose was also based on this same actual 1976 case, but from the parts I've seen on television, the presentation is blatantly heightened for mass-appeal.)

"The great things about Requiem are the few sequences where Schmid successfully blends the images with the 70s soundtrack, letting Hllers face and body tell us more than her words and the often forced dialogue ever could. Through tihis he is opening up space for reflection in scenes which are packed with emotion and detached at the same moment. For once the discrepancy works, and the perfect ending offers us one of the greatest moments you will be able to experience at the movies in 2006."

I agree!