I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Good movie but grossly overrated

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

I fought hard not to fall in love with this movie, but I lost that battle. Words seem inadequate to describe a movie that communicates so effectively with very few words, words that only hold the story together but never carry the full weight of its power. But all I have here is words, so I must try.Breathing is the story of Roman Kogler, a 19-year-old inmate of a juvenile detention center where he has lived since he was 14 and killed a boy who had been bullying him. Roman was given up by his overwhelmed teenage mother soon after his birth (she had almost killed him to stop his crying) and has spent his whole life in orphanages and group homes, where the bullying incident occurred.He is almost catatonic, with no idea how to relate to other human beings. He's like a wounded wild animal held in a cage, never looking anyone in the eye and almost never speaking; I didn't count, but I'd be surprised if he said more than 50 words in the whole movie. Inside the tortured, terrified shell is a sweet and gentle boy tired of being alone but with no idea how to come out; a chance encounter with an American girl on a train is especially touching and lovely.Thomas Schubert, the totally inexperienced actor who plays him (never even in a school play, and went to the audition only because a friend he wanted to see was going) does it all with his eyes, his face, and his body language. To say it's a powerful performance is a pitifully inadequate understatement. He is amazing.This is a very, very great movie, the first feature written and directed by Austrian actor Karl Markovics. It is quiet and unpredictable and deeply moving, with none of the cheap emotional manipulation, gut-wrenching melodrama and gratuitous plot twists I was afraid of after a lifetime of watching American movies. Breathing is beautiful, simple, powerful and profoundly satisfying.

There is no 'love' in this subtle treatment of emotional dysfunction. All the characters will alienate you and are to all intents and purpose 'alienated' in their own lives and roles. Nevertheless, even the hardest officials show a restrained generosity towards the troubled youth Kolger as he fights and struggles against them. The marvel is that once the cause of Kolger's anger is revealed you will completely understand his position, why he has grown with such a sour view of the world. This is not an upbeat movie but it will make you reconsider why it is that troubled people lash out. They may not really know why either, but you can bet there has been a precursor that 'sets them up'. Full marks for illustrating this process without moralising. This film deserves a wider audience - show it to some troubled people, it'll give them cause to hope for a better life.

This is a movie about guilt, dreams, redemption and ultimately hope. You won't like 18 year old Roman Kogler at first. He is sullen, uncommunicative, and in prison. Nobody else seems to like him either. He doesn't like himself. Beset by inner demons, he has committed some unspeakable crime. His only ally is the probation officer who is helping him to find a job that will convince a parole board that Roman is worthy to be released back into the community. Through the course of the movie we learn that he is a boy who has been dealt a bad hand in life. Brought up in care, he has been a lost soul who made a tragic mistake that caused him to spend his teenage years in detention. A job in the city morgue proves to be the turning point in the movie, and in his life. This job is the symbol of his eventual redemption. As his prison peers turn away from him in disgust at his choice of job, his equally wary co-workers, initially sceptical at having a convicted criminal in their midst, soon become accepting of the boy, and eventually encourage him to develop in his new role. A stroke of fate during a call-out one day, leads Roman down a path of self-discovery, which will help him to understand why he became the person he now is, and allows the audience to explore the damaged relationship, which needs to be repaired before the boy can address his inner demons and move on with his life. This is stark, often graphic, but never dull. You will end up liking Roman. As he understands what has brought him to this point in his life, he begins to like himself more. He exhibits an inner strength and confidence that belies his young years. You can be sure he will make a success of himself, in spite of the bad start that life offered him.

Spoiler from the beginning.You can say this is a film about growing up and look back at the choices one makes. But not really as the director explained Q&A at tiff 2011--> it is about breathing - an sign of life. He goes on to say this is about how one did not know the tools of life finds out about these tools .. so (I'm adding here) this person can deal with life.But the choices made from each frame are just about perfect. The sound cuts, the perspectives of the camera, the slow information, the choice for the lead actor, a 17 yr old at the time. He is amazingly good.And it is not easier to watch some parts of this due to the nature of the job the lead protagonist, who is a youth offender. He chose to work in a morgue of all places. But you see what he is trying to do, slowly (and that's the key) as YOU get to know him.Of course the direction is assure. It takes its own time in scenes. Telling just enough, again not in a hurry for information overload.Great job.