Inner Demons are haunting 21 year old Michaela (Sandra Hller), but of what kind, at first nobody seems to be able to say. Having grown up in a small village in Southern Germany, she is accepted at university, and moves away from her family into her own appartment in a bigger city. But her past keeps coming back to her. The film concentrates on the short time-span between the departure of Michaela into a life of her own, and her final arrival back home, til the moment in which she completely surrenders herself to the will of others. The last image of the film shows her in what seemed to me a state of complete acceptance of her situation, and after a fade-out we are informed that she died shortly thereafter.
The past life the protagonist cant get rid of, is represented by the parents, religion, and her (home)community in general. From these main factors the mental illness that keeps bothering her seems to have resulted. Being referred to as epilepsy numerous times during the film, it nevertheless remains unclear what exactly is bothering her (my impression was of a developing schizophrenia). And from the characters almost no one really seems to care. 
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. An approach to filmmaking that has in recent years become very popular amongst younger German directors. 

Where I saw director Hans-Christian Schmid sruggling in Requiem, was in his disinterest with the actual story he was filming, which is based on real accounts from the 70s. In my opinion, Schmid seemed to be exterminating his own inner demons, modelling the character of Michaela on (a) person(s) he may have known in the past. 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. Sadly this experiment for most parts doesnt work out, as the film gets entangled in its own inconsistencies. 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. Same goes for Sandra Hller who has some very effective scenes, paired with others where she doesnt seem to get the character. Her face reminded me at times of Isabelle Huppert, and she certainly has a lot of screen presence. But the overall performance was too unbalanced to be completely successful. I wonder why Schmid hasnt given such a difficult role to a more professional actress. Looking at Isabelle Adjani in Andrzej Zulawskis Possession (1981) where she pulls off a more demanding role proves quite helpful in discerning some weaknesses in Requiem. The problem thus doesnt actually lie with Sandra Hller (who was rightfully praised) nor with the camerawork or any other technical department, but with the director himself. After the highpoint with Lichter in 2003, Schmid nevertheless seems on an interesting journey as a filmmaker, and I am curious to know which subject he will explore in his next film. I hope it will be more of a personal endeavor, rather than a (literal) adaptation. 
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. But if we disregard the inspirational moments which are scattered throughout the film, the overall experience resembles more a half-hearted attempt at copying the Dardenne Brothers. Although, regarding all the critical praise from the media especially here in germany where the film was hailed as a masterpiece - it seems like Im pretty much alone with my evaluation. So you can start bashing me when you have seen the film for yourself.

In an effective twist at the end, the only person who is actually concerned about Michaela herself and not about his/her own problems with the situation is her former classmate who was first introduced as a very unlikable character with identity problems of her own. 
The forces of good and evil are difficult to be separated, and when a person tries to erase a portion of her identity death can be a result. Martyrdom as the inability to reconcile the inner forces. But the opinions on this are surely going to differ.
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The film premiered in the competition of the 2006 Berlin Film Festival garnering a best actress award for Sandra Hller and the FIPRESCI Prize.
personal rating is 60 out of 100