Curveball: "especially valuable"

He uses as a real-life model the Iraqi informant of the German security service BND, who spread false information about Saddam Hussein's bio-weapons production in the late 1990s, information that was already considered disproved in 2002 when the U.S. started the war against Iraq on the basis of it, triggering a conflagration in the Middle East that continues to this day.

After research on the ground, BND bio-weapons expert Wolf (Sebastian Blomberg) is convinced that Iraq under Saddam Hussein is still producing deadly anthrax viruses despite UN controls. His bureaucratic superior Schatz (Thorsten Merten) then appoints him as lead officer for Iraqi asylum seeker Rafid Alwan (Dar Salim), who may be able to offer inside information. Rafid claims to have worked as an engineer on Saddam Hussein's secret biological weapons program. Wolf must now look for evidence, because if this claim turns out to be true, it would be a worldwide sensation for the BND. The German intelligence service would then be many steps ahead of the American CIA. A game of intrigue begins between the BND, Wolf's American colleague Leslie and the CIA. Everyone wants to profit from the witness.

With subtle satirical flair, Johannes Naber puts his finger in the wound of neo-liberal systems and exposes their unscrupulous game with people's fate in a tragicomic and disturbing way. In "Age of Cannibals" he stayed in close in one hotel room and exposed the sly dealings of Western business consultants and their speculations in a civil war zone in an unnamed African country. In "Operation Curveball" he raises the question of truth in politics and the media. Reminiscent of the media satire "Wag the Dog," he shows how a milieu in suits and musty conference rooms builds up a "witness" who ultimately becomes the reason for the American declaration of war on Iraq. The spot-on verbal battles result in the deaths of hundreds of thousands. The film plays with the conventions of the spy and political thriller without giving away its caustic irony. Actual action scenes come unexpectedly and are resolved almost as a parody, such as the bizarre sled chase near the end, which has amusing parallels to comparable stock James Bond scenes.

Minimalist but effective in "Curveball" is also the music, which works with isolated string chords and gives the film a dry, laconic air. Sebastian Blomberg shines in his emphatically 'inhibited' portrayal of the emotionally distraught protagonist, who has never come to terms with the death of his wife and is estranged from his daughter. He fits perfectly with what makes this German film different from its international competitors: It is never glamorous, but everyday; the intrigues in the secret service appear as a succession of trivialities.

The jury was consistently enthusiastic about this film, praising its pointed dramaturgy and dialogue, as well as the exciting constellation of characters. It is not without reason that "Curveball" is close to 'screwball', the term for the dialogue-based comedies of the 30s and 40s. The film creates an equally entertaining and striking insight into the 'construction of truth' in the war of the secret services. Truth is degraded to an illusion -- yet it is to be investigated. The USA builds on 'fake news' and puts 'justice' above truth.

"Curveball" is unpretentious, amusing, witty and pointed in a highly exciting way -- and also unusually original, not only in view of the subject matter. The jury therefore awards it the rating of especially valuable.


source: Filmwelt Verleihagentur, DFF, © Sten Mende
Dar Salim, Sebastian Blomberg in "Curveball"