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Dying

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100% Tomatometer 19 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
DYING follows the very individual members of the Lunies family, who haven't been a family for a long time. Lissy (Corinna Harfouch) is quietly happy about her demented husband Gerd (Hans-Uwe Bauer) slowly wasting away in a home. But her new freedom is short-lived: Diabetes, cancer and kidney failure mean that she doesn't have much time left either. Son Tom (Lars Eidinger), a conductor in his early 40s, is working on a composition called 'Dying', while at the same time being made the surrogate father of his ex-girlfriend's child. And Tom's sister Ellen (Lilith Stangenberg) starts an affair with the married Sebastian (Ronald Zehrfeld), with whom she shares a love for alcohol. As Death finally turns up on the doorstep, the estranged family members finally meet again.

Critics Reviews

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Jonathan Romney Financial Times Conversely, this is not a desolate gaze into the abyss — it’s stuff-of-life family drama brilliantly acted and elegantly executed, with the density and episodic structure of a very compelling mini-series. Rated: 5/5 Aug 5, 2025 Full Review Larushka Ivan-Zadeh The Times (UK) With the dedication “For my family. The living and the dead”, this isn’t misery porn, it’s unsentimental realism shot through with perfectly pitched gallows humour. Rated: 4/5 Jul 29, 2025 Full Review Tara Brady Irish Times The script’s wandering and overlapping arcs can feel uneven and tricksy, yet there’s something utterly compelling in how Glasner stages decay not just as a biological inevitability, but a doomy familial legacy. Rated: 4/5 Jul 24, 2025 Full Review William Stottor Movie Marker Both death and life hang over everything in Dying, but perhaps most strikingly, it’s the pervading loneliness that mists every character’s lives that is most haunting. Rated: 5/5 Jul 29, 2025 Full Review Emma Simmonds The List Don’t let the epic runtime put you off, this is a film that justifies every second. Rated: 5/5 Jul 28, 2025 Full Review Rich Cline Shadows on the Wall Witty and provocative, the film is a deep dive into the ways people connect, particularly the prickly nature of love between family members. Rated: 4/5 Jul 25, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Ginetta V Perfection! Great character depth… kept us engaged for entire 3 hours… Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/16/25 Full Review Angela C Excellent acting, stand out for me was Lilith Stangenberg as the sister.. her emotional struggle was so compelling. The relationships (or lack of them) between the family members were interestingly presented. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/25/25 Full Review Audience Member DÜRFEN EINEN SCHICKSALE KALT LASSEN? Dirigent Tom sitzt an einem Werk namens Sterben, geschrieben von seinem exzentrischen Kumpel Bernard. Das Thema bestimmt bald sein Leben, denn mit seinem an Demenz leidenden Vater geht es zu Ende. Zu seiner Mutter hat er ein abgekühltes Verhältnis, ebenso wie zu seiner Alkoholabhängigen Schwester. Die Premiere seines Werkes soll ganz groß werden, doch das Leben ist selten fair. Sterben geht ca. 180 Minuten und ist ab 16 Jahren freigegeben. Wir haben hier ein Drama rund um eine Familie, die soviele Probleme haben das man nicht umhin kommt zu sagen, Schade um deren Schicksal, aber kümmert es mich? Die Story ist in 5 Kapitel unterteilt, im ersten geht es um die Eltern von Tom. Der Vater ist Dement und läuft ohne Hosen draußen rum, während die Mutter Inkontinent ist. Dieses Kapitel schmerzt wirklich beim zu sehen, da man nie hofft in so eine Lebenslage zu rutschen. Kapitel 2 kümmert sich um Tom und sein quasi Baby, recht interessant gestaltet vorallem das Gespräch mit seiner Mutter schockiert da bis ins Mark, da sind bereits 1,5h Laufzeit in Land gegangen. Dann beginnt der Streifen abzubauen, denn in Kapitel 3 lernen wir die Schwester kennen und mit der konnte ich nichts anfangen. Egal ob sie besoffen in Lettland aufwacht oder über Zahnarztpatieten hinweg über Beziehungen redet. Kapitel 4 und 5 dreht sich um das Stück Sterben, wo mir Bernard absolut und zu jedem Zeitpunkt voll auf den Keks ging. Die Familienleiden haben mich zu diesem Zeitpunkt kaum mehr interessiert, weil sie für mich nicht greifbar waren. Am Ende bleibt ein Werk das nie wirklich schlecht ist, wenn man sich mit den Figuren und deren Schicksalen irgendwie verbinden kann fesselt das sicher bis zum Schluss. Für mich war es überwiegend gelungen, aber da war auch niemand wo ich sage das mich das emotional trifft. Von mir bekommt der Film 6/10 Punkten. Im Grunde ist hier jeder für sein Leid selbst verantwortlich. Die Schwester säuft weil Leben blöd, Tom kann nicht aufhören sich ausnutzen zu lassen, Vater gehört ins Heim und Mutter ist einfach nur bösartig. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/13/25 Full Review Read all reviews
Dying

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Movie Info

Synopsis DYING follows the very individual members of the Lunies family, who haven't been a family for a long time. Lissy (Corinna Harfouch) is quietly happy about her demented husband Gerd (Hans-Uwe Bauer) slowly wasting away in a home. But her new freedom is short-lived: Diabetes, cancer and kidney failure mean that she doesn't have much time left either. Son Tom (Lars Eidinger), a conductor in his early 40s, is working on a composition called 'Dying', while at the same time being made the surrogate father of his ex-girlfriend's child. And Tom's sister Ellen (Lilith Stangenberg) starts an affair with the married Sebastian (Ronald Zehrfeld), with whom she shares a love for alcohol. As Death finally turns up on the doorstep, the estranged family members finally meet again.
Director
Matthias Glasner
Producer
Jan Krüger, Ulf Israel, Matthias Glasner
Screenwriter
Matthias Glasner, Matthias Glasner
Production Co
Port au Prince Film & Kultur Produktion, Schwarzweiss Filmproduktion, Senator Film Produktion
Genre
Drama
Original Language
German
Runtime
3h 5m