SYNOPSIS

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Rudolf Jehlička is not really sure how he lost his leg. All he recalls is that he was unconscious and came to in a field where, to his surprise, he found his right leg lying next to him. He dragged himself to shelter, crawling down into a steep dirt trench, when his leg suddenly fell over his head and into his lap.

Fall follows the story of a man's life defined by an “us” vs. “them” narrative. Fall is about survival and adjustment, not about the heroic tales we watch on TV. The film mixes surreal archival imagery and memories, both true and imagined, with reality.

Rudolf, an old man, watches a TV program that replays his own life experience but he finds the narrative is not told from his point of view. Rudolph’s memory is sharp even if, as any good story teller, he is prone to a little embellishment at times.

When trying to recall how he came to loose his right leg Rudolf’s memories are hazy at best. He does remember that he was fighting against his cousin whose parents had emigrated to another country. Their countries were now enemies and the cousins were pitted to fight against each other, not by choice but by a misfortune of geography.

The story takes place in the Bohemian countryside. The terms “us”/“ours” vs “them”/“theirs” become blurred in Rudolf's case. Although being a German soldier, he eagerly awaits the arrival of the American forces to come and free Germany from Hitler. He remembers, “it took them a little bit since they had to free France first but they moved fast”.

Rudolf Jehlička was born December 6, 1924, the son of Czech mother and German father. He was forcibly drafted into the army and, just a few days after his eighteenth birthday, he found himself fighting for the forces of the German Reich. Rudolf's story is vital because it counters the common narrative of WWII: he was German and yet a victim. He lived outside of Germany.

Fall revisits what nationality means, how artificially drawn borders on the maps ignore a sense of belonging people living around these narrow lines experience and how one's birth place, nationality or minority status can affect the course of one's life.

Without being didactic, Fall mirrors many of today's current issues, hopes and ideas and fears and uncertainties.

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