Curiosity & the Cat

This doesn't quite get the score I'd like to give it because there are just a couple of slightly irritating loose ends. That aside this is a most audacious debut and promises great things. It always looks fine and moves well always retaining a nice mix of menace and innocence. A body is found, police investigate and a man is interviewed briefly in his flat and asked to get in touch if he hears or sees anything suspicious. Whether all of what follows is real or in the guy's mind we are never quite sure but he is seen boring drill holes into the next apartment, even climbing above into the roof space and cutting a trap door into the next room. He hears and sees scraps of violence and sexuality and continually puts two and two together making possibly five and subsequently alienating his girlfriend and almost us. The use of language is interesting with most in German but much with his girlfriend in English and possibly she is supposed to be English. The 'baddies' dialogue is an unsettled and possibly undefined mix of East European sounds, suggesting a fair amount of paranoia for the 'New Europe' by the Germans, which probably is the case. Despite the odd fault this is always very well shot, arresting and interesting. We shall hear more from Mr Alvart.