DVDs in Review

Christiane F

Title: Christiane F (1981)

Release date: November 16 2009

Certificate: 18

Format: DVD

DVD RRP: £15.99

Rating: 4/5

'Christiane F' is the type of film that is horrifying on its own account, but made even more so by the fact that it's a true story. This is a powerful trait for a film to have - it never rides off its real-world link. 'Christiane F' isn't a great film as such, but a breathtakingly powerful one.

The title character is a young girl (Natja Brunckhorst) who grows up in the wrong place with dangerous influences swirling all around her in a seedy, dark and claustrophobic depiction of Berlin. It's easy to see a connection to director Uli Edel's later masterwork 'Last Exit to Brooklyn'.

Aged just 14 while filming, Brunckhorst delivers a compelling performance as the girl who tried angel dust at 12, turned to heroin at 13 and sold her body for sex at 14. It's a heavy piece of character development to give a teenager, and one which could easy be acted out by its events instead of for its humanity, but Brunckhorst makes it her own in her screen debut.

The connection to rock music also gives this film a way in for its more innocent audiences. Here, David Bowie plays himself - one of Christiane's biggest influences - and adds a touch of dark glam, in addition to providing the film with a blistering soundtrack that captures Bowie's best work from her own Germany years (around the time of the 'Heroes' album).

Bowie doesn't get to do much acting (despite being an underrated performer - see 'The Man Who Fell to Earth') but functions more as a way of bridging two very different worlds. Heroin addicts don't have enough money to follow Bowie around on his tour, but they may still find solace and relevance in his lyrics. In effect, the soundtrack is a character in itself.

Catch 'Christiane F' if you can stomach a film that sees two lovers going cold turkey and being sick over each other. Withdrawal has rarely been captured as grimly as it is here. This isn't an inviting film but it is ironically one which you will recommend to others.