Die Theorie von allem

1962. Johannes Leinert, together with his doctoral advisor, travels to a physics congress in the Swiss Alps, where an Iranian scientist is set to reveal a “groundbreaking theory of quantum mechanics”. But when the physicists arrive at the five star hotel, the Iranian guest is nowhere to be found. In the absence of a new theory to be discussed, the physics community patiently turns to skiing. Johannes, however, remains at the hotel to work on his doctor’s thesis, but soon finds himself distracted, developing a special fascination with Karin, a young jazz pianist. Something about her seems strange, elusive. She seems to know things about him—things that he thought only he knew about. When one of the German physicists is found dead one morning, two inspectors arrive on the scene, investigating a homicide case. As increasingly bizarre cloud formations appear in the sky, the pianist disappears without a trace—and Johannes finds himself dragged into a sinister story of false memories, real nightmares, impossible love and a dark, roaring mystery hidden beneath the mountain.

What attracted me was an amalgamated memory-image of cinema, by turns strange and entertaining—sort of as if Hitchcock and Lynch, and many others, known or forgotten, made love on the carpet of an old hotel lobby—where “utility music”, like Bernard Herrmann’s, somehow plays both to dramatic irony and genuine, heartfelt emotion. Is this the tragic tale of an undiscovered genius, or are we observing the paranoid delusions of an obsessed fool? This film invariably does both. Here, Schrödinger’s Cat is both brilliant and brain-dead at the same time. The story seems deeply rooted in the 20th century, that long, weird century which has still not managed to obliterate the old idea of the individual genius “guided by fate”. The opposing idea—to inhabit an indifferent, chaotic universe—remains unbearable until today. Which one is more accurate? The most productive thing resembling an answer, to me, can be found in the multiverse of cinema—and its ongoing ability to synthesize our collective dreams with the trappings of reality, to “shuffle the old cards in new ways”. Just like Johannes, we don’t know who wrote the strange music coming down the hall, but we sure recognize the melody.

PRODUCTION 1: Heino Deckert, Tina Börner – MA.JA.DE. Fiction
Pfaffendorfer Str. 26
04105 – Leipzig, Germany
Tel. +49 3419839697
fiction@majade.de
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/majadefilmproduktions

PRODUCTION 2: Viktoria Stolpe, Timm Kröger – THE BARRICADES
Werbellinstrasse, 59
12053 – Berlin, Germany
Tel. +49 1729481033
contact@the-barricades.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the___barricades/

PRODUCTION 3: Lixi Frank, David Bohun – PANAMA Film
Geusaugasse, 31/3
1030 – Wien, Austria
Tel. +43 19431133
office@panama-film.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/panama.film/

PRODUCTION 4: Sarah Born, Rajko Jazbec, Dario Schoch – CATPICS
Erlachstrasse, 25
8003 – Zürich, Switzerland
Tel. +41 444559900
info@catpics.ch
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catpics_ag
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catpicsag/

WORLD SALES: Yohann Comte - Charades
17, Boulevard Jules Ferry
75011 – Paris, France
sales@charades.eu

ITALIAN DISTRIBUTION: Stefano Jacono – Movies Inspired
Piazza Vittorio Veneto, 5
10124 – Torino, Italia
Tel. +39 3492461767
stefano.jacono@moviesinspired.com
http://www.moviesinspired.it

PRESS OFFICE: Paul Ockelford – Premier
thetheory@premiercomms.com

US PRESS OFFICE: Isaac Davidson, Ryan Werner – Cinetic Marketing
United States of America
Tel. +1 5744856299
Tel. +1 9172547653
isaac@cineticmedia.com
ryan@cineticmedia.com

ITALIAN PRESS OFFICE: Alessandro Russo, Federica Aliano - US Ufficio Stampa
alerusso@alerusso.it
info@us-ufficiostampa.it