Saturday, September 7, 2024

2:30 PM - 5:30 PM EST

Goethe-Institut Toronto

Language: German with English subtitles

Price: free

Lene is going to the Bavarian Forest on her summer vacation which surprisingly turns into a place full of strange creatures and adventures.

Ten-year-old Lene's initial lack of enthusiasm for the planned summer holiday in the Bavarian Forest soon turns into a huge lust for adventure because of what is found there: mythical figures, turtle races, luminescent mushrooms, and tree houses - and along the way, big questions like humanity's responsibilities as part of nature.

The summer holiday destination doesn't exactly thrill the ten-year-old Lene: from Northern Germany, she's off to the Bavarian Forest, where people talk funny. But she quickly finds friends with whom to experience great things, from turtle racing to illuminated mushrooms to tree houses. And she also gets to know mythical figures like the national park ranger “Forest Obelix”, and learns the legend of Peter of the Forest, who got lost while playing in the forest, fell into the “Devil's Hole”, and then slipped into the roots of the forest in the form of water drops.

We share the awe inspired by the rustic forest to which the film dedicates so much time: the sounds, the landscape, the trees, the animals, and the water - and, also, the people who feel connected to the woodland, like “Forest Ursel”, who at one point says, “The forest isn't there for the people. It has a right to life in itself. Because human beings have the power to destroy so much, they also have an obligation to preserve what is around them.”

Duration: 99 min
Year: 2020
Language: German with English subtitles
For Kids 6 and older