Franz

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Franz

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2h 7m

Drama

Biography

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76%

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34 Reviews

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Fewer than 50 Ratings

Award-winning director Agnieszka Holland is embarking on her most ambitious project to date, a biopic of the iconic 20th-century Czech writer Franz Kafka. Conceived as a kaleidoscopic mosaic, the film will follow the imprint Kafka left on the world from his birth in 19th-century Prague to his death in post-WW1 Vienna. FRANZ will give the audience a brand new perspective on the life of the man behind the literary giant.

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Nikki Gemmell

The Australian

May 21

4/5

Franz changes up the form and throws down the gauntlet to other film makers. It stimulates the literature-loving cinema goer in the way Capote, Shirley, Kill Your Darlings and Emily did.

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Peter Rainer

FilmWeek (LAist)

Dec 31

I guess this is officially branded as a biopic, but it's weirder than, as one might expect from a film about Kafka, but maybe not weird enough.

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Robert Daniels

RogerEbert.com

Oct 22

What we’re left with is an ambitious picture that lacks a unique aim.

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Diego Batlle

Otroscines.com

17h

2.5/5

There is a clear attempt to connect with Kafka's tormented existence and literary universe...but the constant shifts in register, style, and tone make it difficult to empathize with and immerse oneself...[Full review in Spanish]

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Jane Freebury

Jane Freebury

May 27

5/5

Complex and surreal, a playful, empathetic portrait of the elusive literary figure

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Jim Schembri

jimschembri.com

May 22

3/5

Bravely, the film pits a linear narrative with touches of time travel...It’s a fine work designed for a discerning, niche audience familiar with Kafka’s work, most notably In the Penal Colony which is vividly recreated here in all its gory detail.

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Runa R

@runa.r Jul 25

It's interesting to see an actor in the lead role who bears such a resemblance to Kafka himself. The film is particularly interesting in the way it combines Kafka’s life with stories from his books, while moving back and forth between the past and the present. Seeing tourists visiting his house and the places he used to frequent, now as tourist attractions, is an unusual and effective way of presenting a biography. The film does not explore Kafka’s life in great depth; nevertheless, it gives us some insight into what his life was like.

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Catalina O

@Catalina316 Jul 14

The movie, trying to say too many things doesn’t say anything. I only appreciate the effort to cultivate the need to read and re-read Kafka so in the personal reading you might find something better. Kafka itself.

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Agnieszka Holland

Director

Idan Weiss

Franz Kafka

Peter Kurth

Actor

Jenovéfa Boková

Milena Jesenská

Sandra Korzeniak

Actor

Katharina Stark

Ottla Kafka

Franz: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Award-winning director Agnieszka Holland is embarking on her most ambitious project to date, a biopic of the iconic 20th-century Czech writer Franz Kafka. Conceived as a kaleidoscopic mosaic, the film will follow the imprint Kafka left on the world from his birth in 19th-century Prague to his death in post-WW1 Vienna. FRANZ will give the audience a brand new perspective on the life of the man behind the literary giant.

Director: Agnieszka Holland
Producer: Sarka Cimbalova, Agnieszka Holland
Screenwriter: Agnieszka Holland, Marek Epstein
Production Co: Telewizja Polska (TVP), Ceská Televize, Metro Films, Canal+ Polska, Czech Anglo Productions, Bac Films, Barrandov Studio, X-Filme Creative Pool
Genre: Drama, Biography
Original Language: Czech
Runtime: 2h 7m