Never Look Away

A painter confronts his heritage in Never Look Away

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck's Never Look Away is a searching look at thirty years of German history that is somewhat negligible as cinema. Something of a film a clef about the early life of painter Gerhard Richter, Never Look Away never bored me during its three hours, yet never swept me away. As in The Lives of Others, von Donnersmarck expertly navigates us through the plights of his characters, but has trouble sharing his character's passions and complexes.

The villain, Professor Seeband, never is given motivation for his work in the Nazi eugenics program which kickstarts the plot. Perhaps von Donnersmarck regards him as a careerist, but he remains sketchy as a character. Sebastian Koch is miscast as the doctor, tamping down his charisma to portray a hollow man. His daughter, played by Paula Beer, falls for the young painter who is played charmingly by Tom Schilling. However, despite numerous sequences with the lovers heaving and shuddering a deux, von Donnersmarck merely records, but does not evoke, their passion.

Because of von Donnersmarck's restraint, he eschews any touch of melodrama or expressionism that might enliven his muted palette. Thus, the plot's predictability is, at times, exacerbated by its modal monotony. Never Look Away is an absorbing film that doesn't come close to penetrating the mystery and passion of artistic creation.