Volker Schlöndorff returns to Cannes with 'Heimsuchung' adaptation

At 87, German director Volker Schlöndorff is presenting his new film 'Heimsuchung' at the Cannes Film Festival in the 'Cannes Premières' sidebar, nearly half a century after winning the Palme d'Or for 'The Tin Drum' in 1979. The film adapts Jenny Erpenbeck's Booker Prize-winning novel, which traces German history from the 1920s through reunification via a lakeside property in Brandenburg. Schlöndorff, who began his career as an assistant to Nouvelle Vague directors like Louis Malle and Alain Resnais, has long been celebrated for literary adaptations including 'Homo Faber' (1991) from Max Frisch's novel and 'Death of a Salesman' (1985) with Dustin Hoffman. He first came to Cannes in 1966 with 'Young Törless'. Despite his accolades, he remains critical of his own work, particularly his adaptation of Kleist's 'Michael Kohlhaas'. Erpenbeck, who knew Schlöndorff from a failed attempt to get into film school in Babelsberg 30 years ago, agreed to the adaptation. The film stars Lars Eidinger, Susanne Wolff, Martina Gedeck, Ulrich Matthes, and Detlef Buck, with David Bennent (the child star of 'The Tin Drum') in a supporting role. Schlöndorff reflects on the difference between literature and film, noting that reading is a long-term project while a film is like a piece of music experienced in two hours.