Solvent (film)

Austrian film

Solvent

Directed by| Johannes Grenzfurthner
Written by|

* Johannes Grenzfurthner
* Benjamin Roberts

Produced by|

* Jasmin Hagendorfer
* Julianne Gabert
* Guenther Friesinger
* Johannes Grenzfurthner
* Tom Gorai (executive)
* Annick Mahnert (executive)
* Bill Straus (executive)
* Neal Jones (executive)

Starring|

* Jon Gries
* Aleksandra Cwen
* Johannes Grenzfurthner
* Roland Gratzer

Cinematography| Florian Hofer
Edited by| Anton Paievski
Music by| Pieter de Graaf

Production
company

monochrom

Running time

| 94 minutes
Country| Austria
Languages|

* English
* German

Solvent is an English-language Austrian supernatural mystery comedy drama horror film directed by Johannes Grenzfurthner and produced by art group monochrom. It stars Jon Gries, Aleksandra Cwen, Johannes Grenzfurthner, and Roland Gratzer.[1][2]

## Plot

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In an Austrian farmhouse, a team of experts discovers a hidden secret while searching for Nazi documents. Among the team is Gunner S. Holbrook, an American expatriate who becomes increasingly obsessed with unraveling the mystery. As Holbrook delves deeper into the farmhouse's dark history, his sanity begins to unravel, leading him to confront an insatiable evil lurking within.[3]

## Themes

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Horror and sound play an essential role in the film.[4] Grenzfurthner says that Solvent forms a trilogy with Masking Threshold and Razzennest.[5][6][7] In an interview with VOD Club, Grenzfurthner explains that while the films in the trilogy don't share a narrative thread, they are linked by their examination of philosophical themes.

In "Masking Threshold," it revolves around the ether, the vibrations, the ephemeral horror. In "Razzennest," it's about the ground, the earth, what is hidden within it, what cannot let go. And in "Solvent," as the name suggests, it will focus on the liquid; on the water that unerringly carves its path, serving as a metaphor for the indelible power of history.[8]

Grenzfurthner used the old farm of his maternal grandfather, Otto Zucker, as the location for the film and also incorporated old photographs of Zucker to depict the Nazi antagonist Wolfgang Zinggl. Grenzfurthner spoke at length about his desire to incorporate the reality of his family into this fictional exploration of Austria's Nazi past.[9] Zebrabutter calls this a cinematic "palimpsest."[10]

The film combines a point-of-view style with experimental techniques, incorporating elements of both mystery and splatter films.

## Production

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At the film shoot for Solvent in Unterzögersdorf, Lower Austria, in March 2023.

The film was primarily shot in Unterzögersdorf, Lower Austria, from March to November 2023.

## Cast

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* Jon Gries as Gunner S. Holbrook
* Aleksandra Cwen as Krystyna Szczepanska
* Johannes Grenzfurthner as Ernst Bartholdi
* Roland Gratzer as Fredi Weinhappl
* Jasmin Hagendorfer as Cornelia Dunzinger/Cousine Edith
* Ronald von den Sternen as Richie Fischvogt
* Peter Plos (body performance) and Galen Howard (voice) as Kyle Edward Boll
* Bibiane Zimba as Leni
* Sky Elobar as Mike Haneke
* Otto Zucker (archival footage) as Wolfgang Zinggl

## Release

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The film premiered at Slash Filmfestival in Vienna in September 2024.

Johannes Grenzfurthner's reliably radical(ly humorous) fathoming of the Austrian psyche in stream-of-consciousness style is a witty and sometimes hilariously low-brow POV-horror grotesque. The director leads the viewer down to dank, damp cellars where yesteryear's gunk seeps unhindered into the present. And the result is a film as visionary as it is insane.[11]

Nightmares Film Festival hosted the U.S. premiere.[12] Dark Nights Film Festival in Sydney presented the Australian premiere.[13]

## Reception

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### Critical response

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## Reception

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### Critical response

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Bradley Gibson of Film Threat (8.5/10) says Solvent "takes us to the darkness of humanity's most wicked impulses flowing just beneath us, poisoning the water table. [...], creates and deepens a mood of growing spiritual decay. Lovecraft explored the notion that horror and madness could render physical changes, and this is delightfully pursued as well."[14] Critic Anton Patel remarks that "the film deals in serious issues – the most serious – about human nature and our capacity for both evil and good (mixed, as in a solvent). That tonal dissonance between comedy and horror only adds to the discomfort created in the viewer, who is confronted with the awfulness, whether merely petty or outright genocidal, coursing invisibly, and often absurdly, through all our veins."[15] Richard Propes (The Independent Critic) praise the performances of Gries, Cwen, and Grenzfurthner, and states: "Solvent isn't an easy film to watch and it's sure not for the timid, however, for those who prefer their cinema uncompromising and with integrity galore there may not be a more must-see film in 2024."[16]

## Awards

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* The Film from Hell (Best of the Fest) at Nightmares Film Festival 2024

## See also

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* Austria portal
* Horror portal
* Film portal
* Comedy portal

* Art horror
* Horror-of-personality
* Social thriller

## References

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1. ^ "'Solvent' Trailer Teases Mysterious Evil In New POV Horror From Johannes Grenzfurthner". Dread Central. 10 September 2024. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
2. ^ "Desafiando la cordura. Trailer para Solvent". Cinema Maldito. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
3. ^ "Forum: "Knäuel Kulturdreieck" 4/7 – Johannes Grenzfurthner - Nachgespräch". Kunst Umgehen Digital. 19 June 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
4. ^ "Nate's Film Reviews". Kunst Umgehen Digital. 15 April 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
5. ^ "Sound ist das Wichtigste beim Film!" (in German). 19 March 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
6. ^ "Kino-Zeit: Razzennest" (in German). Retrieved 25 August 2024.
7. ^ "Fandor Keyframe: Razzennest". 5 May 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
8. ^ "Interview with Johannes Grenzfurthner". VOD Club. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
9. ^ "PopHorror: Interview with Johannes Grenzfurthner". PopHorror. Retrieved 21 October 2024.
10. ^ "Zebrabutter: "We are all Holocaust deniers"". Zebrabutter. Retrieved 21 October 2024.
11. ^ "Solvent". Slash Filmfestival. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
12. ^ "Nightmares Film Festival's First Wave Announcement: From the First Horror Film to the Newest". Horror Fuel. 6 September 2024. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
13. ^ "Solvent". Dark Nights Film Festival. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
14. ^ Solvent, review; Film Threat, 25 September 2024
15. ^ Solvent, review; Projected Figures, 26 September 2024
16. ^ Solvent, review; The Independent Critic, 3 October 2024

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Solvent (film).

* Solvent at IMDb
* Solvent at Letterboxd
* Official homepage