Breathing

Much is asked of non-professional actor Thomas Schubert and it is ultimately his performance that raises the film to the level of the sublime.

A film of unreconciled impulses, Breathing is by turns vaguely sentimental and cooly detached in a manner that's ultimately more off-putting than it is complementary.

Elegant cinematography by Martin Gschlacht, one of Austria's most sought-after lensers, gives "Breathing" added depth.

Behind the film's copious themes and social criticisms lies an intoxicating appreciation of life as a fragile and delicate gift which can so often be taken for granted.