The Teacher’s Lounge: German drama is an intense allegory

A school becomes an allegory for society in tense German drama The Teacher’s Lounge, which was nominated for Best International Film at this year’s Oscars.

Leonie Benesch stars as Carla, an idealistic new teacher at a high school where there have been a series of thefts. After one of her students is suspected, she decides to investigate herself. However, her noble intentions turn out to have dire consequences, setting off a chain reaction involving irate parents and an oppressive school structure that threatens to push her over the edge.

The setting may be mundane, but the themes discussed in The Teacher’s Lounge go way beyond the school corridors. Writer/director Ilker Çatak builds a house of cards and makes us watch it fall, exposing a system that intends to serve all, but ends up serving none. The setting of a school, where all involved must find a way to co-exist, makes a statement about the ways in which a community can quickly crumble with a few misplaced words. It makes for tense viewing, with every meeting hoping for a resolution and ending with an even more tangled web.

Benesch feels very authentic in the lead, breaking down slowly as the system begins to crush her. Already an outsider, both in terms of experience and due to her Polish background, Carla fights for a solution in an environment that seems to create more problems. Of the ensemble cast, young actor Leonard Stettnisch is endearing as Oskar, a bright student thrown into uncertainty when his mother clashes with Carla.

The Teacher’s Lounge doesn’t beat you over the head with political symbolism, instead using humble circumstances to show society’s vulnerabilities. If you don’t mind biting all your nails off, it’s a thrilling experience.