Rasieren

As a woman's voice scolds him from off-stage, a young man, oblivious to her harsh words, walks into a bathroom, turns on the radio and begins to shave. While he observes himself, humming, in a three-part mirror, the camera, which has until then focused on details of the sink and the blade being washed under the tap, takes up and shares the man's own perspective looking in the mirror.

As the woman's accusations escalate from everyday household trifles to fundamental issues in their relationship, calling into question the man's attentiveness, his love for her and her standing in his life, the first red drop splashes into the white sink. Seconds later, the entire bathroom is immersed in red; blood flows in streams down the walls and over the floor. The young man, utterly impervious, continues to shave - without the least sign of pain or shock - as if the bloodbath were an accustomed part of this daily routine.

With the help of various levels of sound and image, Frerix & Sarno describe in Rasieren an apparently real problem situation that ends in an unnoticed horror. (Kathrin Ann Bender)