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Nominee for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film 2009 (Austria) Revanche is a tale of guilt, red lights (as in district) and the art of getting even.

Written and directed by Austrian filmmaker Götz Spielmann, the action switches back and forth from the lovely, rural countryside to the gritty backstreets of Vienna.

Alex (Johannes Krisch) and Tamara (Irina Potapenko) live in the big city, a world where they’re enslaved by brothel owners, drugs and money. Tamara works as a prostitute, while Alex (a former convict) is a glorified gofer for the bordello where Tamara is employed. Robert (Andreas Lust) and Susanne (Ursula Strauss) are a happily married couple living a predominantly average life in a house located in an idyllic countryside. But appearances can be deceptive and when the two worlds collide, their lives are irreparably changed.

Does it sound like the premise of many other movies we’ve seen both past and present? Yes, except that this film isn’t a Hollywood production; meaning that the story is much less predictable. And that’s a good thing.

Alex and Tamara are lovers, but the relationship between the ex-con and the Ukrainian prostitute is frowned upon by management, so the two go to great lengths to conceal their liaisons. Besides sex, the glue that binds them together is their desire to abandon their deplorable jobs and flee. The only thing standing in their way is……money. With a little bit of cash, Alex can fulfill his dream of opening a restaurant in Ibiza.

Alex hatches a plan to rob a bank located in a small town in Austria close to where his grandfather lives. Tamara is not in favor of his scheme, but reluctantly acquiesces as long as she can accompany him. Alex assures her that nothing can go wrong with the robbery. And he’s correct – nothing does go wrong with the robbery. It’s the getaway that’s a little more problematic.

It’s at this point that something goes horribly awry and this critic chooses not to reveal what transpires. (You don’t want me to spoil all the fun, do you?).

Alex flees to the country and seeks refuge on his grandfathers farm (Johannes Thanheiser) and plots his revenge while chopping wood for winter. It’s here he meets the kind-hearted Susanne.

Spielmann assembles a whole host of characters who demonstrate basic human emotions; sadness, revenge, desire and loneliness. Add isolation to the mix, whether it’s in a big city or in a desolate forest and it makes for intense character studies. Even though the plot moves slowly (think snail-pace), the characters were authentically portrayed. According to the press notes, Potapenko spent a few nights “incognito” in a brothel; drinking champagne with customers and pole dancing while Lust spent a week at a police station in training mode.

The one thing I didn’t like about this film: The pace. The first revelation doesn’t come until almost an hour into the film – that’s a long time to ask an audience to wait without looking at their watch.

The one thing I liked about this film: The unpredictability. I’m pretty good at conjecture and just when I thought I had a handle on who would exact revenge upon whom, the script takes a wicked turn.

If you can wean yourself from MTV-paced entertainment and can sit in a comfy seat luxuriating in a movie that affords a more leisurely tempo, you’ll enjoy Revanche. If you’re seeking faster-paced, shoot-em-up scenarios, like Alex, you’ll be seeking revenge against those who talked you into buying a ticket. 

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