The viewers are not only mere spectators in the legal thriller Terror-Ihr Urteil (The Verdict).
Instead, they act as jury members during a trial and have to judge for themselves whether the protagonist is guilty or innocent.
The television movie Terror-Ihr Urteil is adapted from the play of German bestseller author and lawyer Ferdinand von Schirach. Directed by Lars Kraume, it stars Florian David Fitz, Lars Eidinger, Martina Gedeck and Burghart Klaußner.
The case, in which the viewers will judge, is a nightmare scenario.
It revolves around terrorists who hijack a passenger plane and plan to steer it to a football arena filled with 70,000 people. Against the law and the order of his superiors, German air force pilot Lars Koch (Fitz) shoots down the airplane, killing all passengers on board. Although having saved the lives of tens of thousands, Koch is charged with 164 counts of homicide.
The decision whether to convict or acquit Koch lies in the hands of the audience. It is a “choose your own adventure” of sorts as the audience’s opinions have impact on the actual judgment. The film will play an alternate ending depending on the vote of the audience.
When it was aired in Germany, 86.9 percent of participants voted for innocent, saying that Koch had made the right decision. Only 13.1 percent voted for guilty and were in favor of Koch going to prison.
Using the ethical experiment trolley problem as the reference, Terror-Ihr Urteil tests the viewers’ fundamental ethical values. Viewers are caught in the middle of an ethical quandary. Is it justified to kill a few to save thousands of people?
Not only this film confronts the public with the existential question: “Can life be balanced against life?” but it also has terrifying relevance in this era when extremist groups terrorize parts of the world.
The film is reminiscent of the September 11 attacks in the Unites States that left around 3,000 people dead as it tackles air safety issue.
The scenes terrorists hijacking the plane and Koch shooting it down are not shown in the film, but they appear as reports during the trial. Although the film revolves on the courtroom hearing alone, it ensures that discussions on laws and morals are never boring or dry.
The dialogues are precise and the arguments are comprehensible that even an ordinary moviegoer without a background on law can understand and make a decision.
Terror-Ihr Urteil is a brilliant television movie reinforced by the outstanding performances of actors and excellent production that engage the audience to participate not as just mere viewers but as active stakeholders.
There is no clear right or wrong decision on Koch’s case. Both standpoints—the prosecution and the defense—have good rational and moral arguments.
On one hand, the prosecutor is right when she said that human dignity is inviolable and lives cannot be reduced to objects. On the other hand, the defender is also correct when he said that what is right should outweigh the principles and sometimes, humans have to choose to do the lesser evil.
After all, the judgment is left to the audience.
Terror-Ihr Urteil is one of the 24 films featured in this year’s installment of Cine Europa. Catch this legal thriller until September 24, Tuesday at Shang Cineplex in Mandaluyong. Admission is free on a first come, first served basis.