This is not the first abuse-themed film I've seen but being quite minimalistic, it IS very dark and, in my view, devoid of any hope. All we see is a vicious circle where three generations co-exist interdependently and endlessly: the deeply traumatized father, an old victim of war, who lost his mind; his son Ewald, not less deeply traumatized, which results in him being fixated on little children; a little boy Octavian, who is traumatized and abused by both his family and Ewald. All the other characters as well as the social surrounding are either violent or apathetic to what is happening and why. Yes, the story is more delicate than that: for example we can easily see that Octavian's family is abusing the boy a lot more violently than Ewald does or could do but in my opinion, this is less important.
What sends shivers is the fact that this can be people's everyday life and there seems to be nothing they can do to understand there's more to life than what they know. Sordid and harrowing life.
