The journalist Fritz Gerlich resisted the Nazis. The film award named after him will honor an American-Georgian drama in 2024. The focus is on two judo fighters from Israel and Iran.
The American-Georgian drama “Tatami” is this year’s winner of the Fritz Gerlich Prize. The award for the directing duo, the Israeli Guy Nattiv and the Iranian Zar Amir, was presented by Cardinal Reinhard Marx on Wednesday evening in Munich. The prize, which has been awarded annually since 2012, commemorates the Catholic journalist Fritz Gerlich (1883-1934).
In the early 1930s, Gerlich, as editor of the weekly newspaper “Der gerade Weg”, took a firm stance against National Socialism. He was arrested in 1933 after Hitler was appointed Chancellor and murdered in the Dachau concentration camp on June 30, 1934. The prize named after him is donated by the Catholic film production company Tellux and is endowed with 10,000 euros. The award is given to a film from the Munich Film Festival program that advocates more humanity and against dictatorship, intolerance and persecution.
While the film is the first collaboration between filmmakers from Israel and Iran at the directorial level, it addresses the unbroken Iranian hostility towards Israel using the example of sport. “Tatami” is set during a women’s judo world championship in Tbilisi, Georgia. There, Iranian judoka Leila Hosseini competes with justified hopes of a good placing and defeats her first opponents with ease.
This alarms the representatives of the Iranian regime, because the athlete could meet an Israeli during the tournament. Leila Hosseini is therefore supposed to fake an injury. The judoka refuses and continues her fights. However, the pressure increases with each victory, because not only the athlete and her trainer are threatened, but also their families in Iran.
The jury of the Fritz Gerlich Prize praised “Tatami” as a moving, always believable and rousing film. It takes up central ideas of Fritz Gerlich, such as resistance against dictatorial regimes and the inner struggle that leads to decisions that are associated with harsh consequences. “Showing backbone, fighting for personal freedom, resisting violence and lies, the sacrifices that come with it – these themes connect Fritz Gerlich and the film across time and culture in an impressive way,” explained the jury. Tellux Managing Director Martin Choroba added: “Especially in today’s times, it is very important to recognize such a courageous work!”
“Tatami” is inspired by several cases in which Iranian female athletes defied the orders of the regime and broke with it. In their production, Nattiv and Amir rely primarily on time pressure to build up tension in an almost thriller-like manner. The judokas’ competitions follow one another quickly, and in the breaks between them the officials’ threats become increasingly intense. They even do not shy away from imprisoning and torturing the relatives of Leila Hosseini and her trainer Maryam.
“Tatami” shows how the two women find themselves in the same situation, but initially react differently. Maryam does not resist the violence for long, but Leila does not want to give in. She can also count on the full support of her husband, whom she urges to flee Iran with her son during a break in the fighting. Meanwhile, her own strength seems to be mobilized by the tense situation, and she gives the very last bit of strength to herself in the increasingly tough fights.
Last but not least, “Tatami” makes it clear how flimsy the threatening atmosphere that is being built around the athlete is. Leila and Maryam are by no means defenseless and can still make their own decisions. But the price for this is high, because it means separation from their homeland and uncertainty about the fate of their families. But with their courage they deal a serious blow to a system that oppresses millions of people.
2024-07-03 20:57:46
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