This is a bizarre little film, almost too strange to be true.
Ulrich Mott (Christoph Waltz) is a fake diplomat, worming his way into the elite society of Washington DC, mostly through his much older wife, and World War II survivor Elsa Brecht (Vanessa Redgrave), who also happens to be a homophobe, which does come into play in the two pivotal scenes in the films. The only one who thinks he's full of shit is Elsa's professor daughter, Amanda (Annette Bening). And then Elsa dies. And while she's ninety-one, which is super old, she didn't die of natural causes, it was murder and Ulrich is the prime suspect and is put on trial, trying to use his government immunity as he feels that she was killed because of his connections. What and who Ulrich really is is slowly revealed throughout the film and that ending twist is a killer (unfortunately for Elsa, literally) and while it's super crazy, it's also just crazy enough to be true and the film is based on real events so this film does blur the lines between fiction and reality. But the acting is solid and it is interesting as you have to know the truth or at least how this film ends, even though the screenplay is a little bizarre. You just kind of have to roll with it. Grade: B
Side Notes:
-This is the second film where Annette Bening and Vanessa Redgrave portrayed mother and daughter; the first was the far superior Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool.
-Corey Hawkins does what he can with his bland role of defense attorney, dealing with the volatile Mott.
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