Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Grand Jeté Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf November 6, 2022

“Grand Jete” is a German production about the timeless love between a boy and his mother. Well, perhaps not timeless. And “love” here means “a sudden sexual relationship.” Screenwriter Anna Melikova has the challenge of bringing Anke Stelling’s book to the screen, making sense of incest and profound psychological problems, which aren’t easy to watch. Director Isabelle Stever tries to find her own way to approach such a sensitive topic, electing to fully immerse the picture in a sensorial viewing experience, hoping to generate a special mood to best approach a troubling tale of obsession. “Grand Jete” doesn’t go full Haneke, but it comes close, making the viewing experience both compellingly and irritatingly uncomfortable as Stever tries to put together a puzzle of mental illness, keeping away from dramatic structure for as long as possible.

Nadja (Sarah Nevada Grether) is a ballet teacher and former star of the stage who’s fallen into depression. Her body is a mess and her mind is burning, working to carry on with daily business. She’s moved into her mother’s apartment, reuniting with her son, Mario (Emil von Schonfels), a maturing young man who’s been estranged from his parent for most of his life, raised by his grandmother. Learning to be with each other again, Nadja and Mario soon embark on a sexual relationship, giving the older woman an adventure of pleasures while an emotional breakdown seeps out of her system.

“Grand Jete” doesn’t carry big Kay Parker energy. It’s much more of an esoteric endeavor, with the director defining her creative approach in the opening act, which largely focuses on Nadja’s skin and the sounds of her rituals. Cinematography focuses on movement, not always faces, observing Nadja’s decay and pain, working to maintain her position as a viable ballerina. This involves teaching as well, dealing with girls trying to achieve their dream of dance, which involves strict instruction and weekly weigh-ins.

A reunion with Mario creates something approximating a story in “Grand Jete,” with the estranged mother drawn to her son, who works in a local gym and, during his free time, competes in penis weightlifting endurance trials (someone call the Olympic Committee). This confidence is catnip to Nadja, who quickly seduces her willing child, even asking him his thoughts on being inside of her for a second time. “Grand Jete” doesn’t create a grand arc of corruption with the taboo pairing, instead examining behavioral quirks and acts of submission as Nadja slowly relinquishes control, giving herself to a situation that excites her in ways she rarely feels anymore.

Grand Jeté Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.50:1 aspect ratio) presentation delivers compelling detail throughout the viewing experience. "Grand Jete" is a movie of surfaces and skin, and texture remains interesting as bodies and spaces are explored. Exteriors retain dimension. Colors are secure, with warmer living spaces and more dynamic club visits. Clothing is also crisply defined. Skin tones are natural. Delineation is satisfactory. Grain is fine and film-like.

Grand Jeté Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix offers clear dialogue exchanges and a compelling sense of atmospherics as the characters make their way through rooms and around the city. Surrounds are subtle, with the listening event largely frontal, capturing growing intimacy. Music is crisp, exploring soundtrack selections and club visits, though low-end deals lightly with dance music beats.

Grand Jeté Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Interview (35:14, HD) is an extended discussion of "Grand Jete" with stars Sarah Nevada Grether and Emil von Schonfels. Topics including casting, content, director Isabelle Stever, intimacy challenges, and future plans and projects.

• And a Trailer (1:45, HD) is included.

Grand Jeté Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Grand Jete" isn't out to make a point. It prefers to wander through this dire relationship, which becomes a source of unintentional comedy as Stever observes Mario eat a meal in real time, and there's a lengthy sequence concentrating on Nadja vomiting into a toilet. Euro Cinema extremes are present (Nadja eventually masturbates with a pair of scissors) and not always welcome, but at the core of "Grand Jete" is a reasonably interesting study of madness in its most subtle forms, providing strong character inspection in the midst of potent psychological violence and directorial indulgence.