ROSE

Said to be the "true and twisted tale of a deceiver of land and folk, who, defying her birth as a woman, comported herself as a man and committed many a wicked deed," what follows is far more complex. Battle-worn, 'the soldier' (Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall, SFF 2023) turns up in a village bearing the paperwork to lay claim to an abandoned farmstead. Initially sceptical, the villagers come to respect the industrious stranger. As the soldier's influence grows, he is pressured to marry, which he does – setting in motion a series of surprising and tragic events. Director Schleinzer (Angelo, SFF 2018) tackles the material, based on historical characters, with a wry humour and an admiration for a gender non-conforming stalwart.