Wen Dini, also known as the water goddess, is the master of all water elements. They are mostly found near lakes and waterfalls in the forest. In European folklore, Wentini cannot obtain a real soul if she cannot be associated with a mortal man. When the man with Wentini has an affair, Wentini will kill the man and return to life in the water again.
In the film, Wentini works as a historian at the Berlin Urban Development Committee, and her daily job is mainly to explain the changes of the city to visitors. When the man she loves leaves her, ancient myths connect with her life. Wentini had to kill the man who betrayed her and return to the water.
It is not difficult to find that the heroine arranged by the director has the ambition of a water goddess: she wants to get rid of tragedy, depression and the shadow of twentieth-century Germany. It’s rare for a male director to delve so deeply into a female-dominated film. The director put the ancient story in a modern setting, while retaining the female first point of view, and Wentini under his lens no longer wants to return to the lake. Despite her stubborn streak, she seems to have adapted to life on land: a decent job, a high-end apartment, and a lot of effort spent researching the city's history. At the same time, the film devotes considerable space to the complex modern history of the city of Berlin, regardless of cost.
The protagonist's performance is subtle, but whether she can win the Golden Bear for Best Actress needs to be questioned. The underwater shots are quite brilliant. The combination of elements such as love, deception, hope, and fate makes the film have a strong storytelling. It is not a must-see film festival film, but it has a good look and feel.
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