It was very distracting for me (and for many others, as for some threads in this forum) to see Victoria taking so many unrealistic decisions. At the piano scene, it is suggested that it might be caused by her extreme loneliness, but it is just too hard to believe that such a cute, friendly, extrovert girl wouldn't have found loads of friends and suitors after 3 months working at a Cafe and going out to clubs of a big and lively metropole. I think the movie would have worked much better if they had cast a less atractive actress, and if she acted a little more insecure. What do you all think?
Well, I thought about this myself (and this reminds me of "Amelie", famously written with Emily Watson in mind, who was for some reasons replaced by Audrey Tautou -- certainly a decision which changed the character of the whole movie). Casting Laia Costa was one of the most important decisions of the movie.
The movie "Victoria" originally had the working title "Überfall" (robbery) and the four guys had more scenes in the rough script, Victoria wasn't the main character. Then someone suggested to Schipper that he should either get rid of the Victoria character or make her the main character. When Laia Costa was casted, this decision wasn't yet made, Costa thought she only had to play a supporting role. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4226388/board/flat/249161182 Schipper: "the one thing we developed the most was Victoria. Laia and I worked together on it..."
Schipper saw that Costa could carry the movie. And the movie was developed with her in mind, even with her own ideas. So, what is the result? Schipper gives on the commentary track his own interpretation (not necessarily the only right interpretation, a piece of art must always speak for itself): He says that Victoria's main characteristic is delusion of grandeur. That's why she wanted to become a world famous piano player, ignoring that her talent wasn't big enough. That's why she played "Mephisto" on the café's piano, which is known as "the unplayable piece" -- nobody would try that. She is attracted to Mephisto, the devil, not because of (anti-)religious thoughts, but because it is forbidden. If no one else dares, she is always the one who wants to take the risk (remember the scene on the roof when Victoria wants to sit on the edge?). Everyone has dreams, but her dreams are always bigger than life. Schipper says that only one person really needed the robbery. None of the guys, they had other options. They saw the risk. It was Victoria who pushed them and wanted to take the risk. Her old delusional life was broken down, she was more than ready to jump into a new delusional adventure ... and of course, there were also the drugs working.
You may recognize that Schipper describes himself when he describes Victoria. Who else would try to make this movie in one take? Only someone who wants to be "the crazy one", someone who ignores the risks and ignores the rules. That's why I like this explanation. And even if Costa is not so delusional as Victoria, she was the right actress to encourage Schipper's visions.
Is Laia Costa the right character to play this delusional girl? She is extrovert and bold, that's better than introvert and timid and shy. And she did carry the movie, almost everyone said that. Maybe they could have developed her delusional character a bit more.
What if they would have chosen a less pretty actress and emphasized her loneliness? I am sure it would have become a very different movie -- not necessarily shot in one take. (There even is a movie which comes to my mind, one of my favorites: "Sur mes lèvres/Read my lips" (2001) by Jacques Audiard. Very recommended if you don't know it yet.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0274117)
Thanks for all the info, really interesting. If I watched the movie now her actions wouldn't feel so unbelievable. However, I still think that the movie should have given more clues on her state of mind. Without this previous knowledge, most viewers will be annoyed by her choices. thanks!
I'd like to add that I find your question very legitimate.
In most movies you see unrealistic behaviour and it would be silly to criticize that. But in this movie, taken in one single shot, the basic idea seems to be to show me a seamless transition from a situation A to a situation B where B is completely different from A. So different that you can't believe this really happened -- but you have to believe it because there wasn't a single cut. Everything really happened in 2 hours, and looking back from B you can't believe it started in A only 2 hours ago.
It's like watching the dawn. The world changes completely from night to day life and it is fascinating that you can't just put your finger on a single point in time and say: Here it is -- before that point it is night, after that point it is day. No wonder that Schipper wanted to include that transition in his one shot take, it emphasizes the basic idea.
But you expect the same with the plot: the flow of the action, the acting of the characters should be seamless. And since "From A to B" is mostly about Victoria, everyone feels encouraged to put his finger on a certain point in time and say: Here it is -- before that point Victoria was a nice harmless girl, after that point she is an irresponsible criminal.
I believe that Schipper and his team saw this problem and tried to do their best. Schipper's solution to make the flow "seamless" was to get the actors away from acting and to make them improvise and believe in the realness of the situation -- that's what he says again and again on the commentary track. He mentions "Apocalypse Now" as his favorite movie, and he modifies Coppola's quote "A.N. is not about Vietnam, it is Vietnam" to "Victoria is not about a robbery, it is a robbery". (Schipper reminds me a lot of Werner Herzog, btw.)
Maybe someone else will come and make it completely different and better in the next one take movie.
I completely agree. While watching the film I foun at least 20 opportunities for her to flee with ease and no consequences while there was no reason for her to stay but to keep the film going on. I loved the fact that it was shot in one scene and the main actors were superb. Besides that, the film continues without any reason but to tell a story that has lots of leaks. Fresh air anyway!
She didn't WANT to leave! I'm still not sure why people are overlooking this simple fact. She chose to join them. The World isn't Black and White, most of us live in a Gray Area, Victoria is one of them. It's actually VERY Believable if you've ever met people like her. I lived amongst crime my entire life and have met a few Victoria's along the way.
Unrealistic? I'm not sure the behaviour of a character we really know nothing about can be deemed "unrealistic" as people make decisions to commit acts like this on an hourly, daily basis
I think you're brain sees a nice-looking white European girl get mixed up with the "wrong types" but she surely shows herself to be equal to them. I'm sure if she was a black actress your stereotyping might be different
Her behaviour may not have been "normal", but I agree with the other posters that feel it was consistent overall.
From the outset, she is clearly aware of the situation going on around her and makes many conscious choices to remain. She's quick to get involved with the group's risk taking too - i.e. the peanuts and cars.
However, it never occurred to me that this was simply a response to 15 years pursuing her dream of being a pianist... I think that's too much of a leap, although I see it as a contributing factor to "going off the rails".
Instead, it seems far more likely that she is also somewhere on the personality disorder spectrum. In addition to irresponsibility, she comes across as low empathy/selfish in several scenes. There are moments of superficial warmth, but these could equally down to developed manipulation skills and/or shared goals.
Personally, I think she walks away quite coldly at the end; she must know that the chances of getting away with it are slim. However, she's continuing to server her own interests, despite everything that has happened. An innocent, introverted, shy pianist would still have been crying in the hotel room as the emergency services showed up.
Victoria loves taking risks and hates feeling lonely.
In her childhood, I assume that her parents force her to practise the piano every day and she has no social life, which is totally different from who she really is. That's why when she grows up, she chooses to behave in another way.
At the beginning, she strives to maintain conversations with the bartender. In Germany, she feels very lonely. Afterwards, the four guys are nice to her, which boosts her self-esteem. She eventually finds someone who is willing to talk to her, play with her and even listen to her music. Sonne knows more about her history and admires her because of her talent. In this short period of time, they become a family.
I think the character's desire to take risks and fear of loneliness can be further developed, but I won't say her behaviour is totally unrealistic.
What most causes me disbelief is the fact that she "eventually finds someone who is willing to talk to her". This should be a very common event for a girl with her looks. I can buy a very cold barman ignoring her, but I doubt she could spend hours alone in a big city nightclub without a bunch of guys hitting on her.