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Tyrol, a region situated in the Austrian and Italian Alps, is probably
the central-European region with the proudest populace - a populace
steeped in tradition (covering everything from music to dances to fashion
and architecture), a very pious populace, a populace that loves its Tyrol
more than anything else and that's proud to speak a version of German
hardly understood by any non-Tyrolean. On the other hand, Tyroleans are
also regarded to be thick-headed to the point of stubborness and slightly
xenophobic. Der Untergang des Alpenlandes, a brainchild of
Tyrolean composer/musician Werner Pircher, is a satire on the Tyrolean set
of values, touching everything from God and the Devil to Tyrolean marksman
to traditional dances and music and fashion, dressed up as a
pseudo-musical, with its songs being a strange and intentionally clumsy
blend of folk songs and experimental music. The film's narrative
structure is intentionally feeble and repeatedly interrupted by all the
actors stepping out of character to complain about their roles, have a
beer and the like. Still, this all makes the film pretty charming, in
its own anachronistic way, and it's actually pretty amusing too ... though
I might add, it certainly helps to understand German and have a few ideas
about Tyrol as such to fully appreciate the film.
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