"Aloys" is a 90-minute live action movie that had its world premiere this year in 2016. Do not be fooled by the presence of lead actor Georg Friedrich. He may be Austrian, but this is nonetheless a French/Swiss co-production that resulted in a Swiss-language film. The writer and director is relatively young Swiss filmmaker Tobias Nölle and looking at the awards attention this film already received, it is definitely his biggest success so far. This is also thanks to Friedrich I am sure as he is among Austria's finest right now and you could almost call this film a one-man show for him, even if his female co-lead Tilde von Overbeck gets more and more screen time the longer the film goes on. And she may also be the biggest problem of this movie. With this statement, I am not referring to her acting, but to her character in general and how she was written. I very much enjoyed the film when it was just Friedrich and his life, how he did his job, how he dealt with his father's death, how he coped with meeting a former school mate etc. When the focus switches to his relationship to the character named Vera, it becomes an entirely different movie. The whole premise of somebody entering the main character's life in such a mysterious and drastic fashion is already pretty absurd, but I could have dealt with that if the movie had not turned into such a mess. What we see is all so absurd and goes completely against what we hear. Apart from table scene at the Asian restaurant, it is never clear what is fiction and what is fact sadly. And the words chosen also quickly feel pretty contrived and pretentious sometimes even. The characters add very little and feel (depsite the different physics) mostly interchangeable as they add nothing to the story at all. Such a shame. All this also hurts the final shot, which was actually pretty nice with the two uniting at the hospital, but I could not even appreciate this scene anymore after all the mess from earlier. I will not go a lot into detail, but one of the worst scenes is when the image of the woman changes into the image of the protagonist's dead father. It was really all style over substance at that point. Maybe the maker understood what he wanted to depict and tell us with this movie, but he sure did not succeed in making a film where the audience understands it. This film was definitely a missed opportunity as they could have turned this into one of the best German-language films from this year if they had chosen a different story path halfway in. Oh yeah, I just said "German", but the accents here are pretty thick, so I definitely recommend subtitles regardless of you being a native German or native English speaker. But I recommend much more to stay away from this film as it was not a rewarding watch. Thumbs down.

"Phone Walking", a proposed theoretical technique devised by neurologists, is the ability for two callers to concentrate on background frequencies of a conversation to visualise a shared location within their imagination. The rustling of plastic bags. Leaves blowing in the blustery winds. Underground trains speeding through subway stations. A method utilised to help disintegrate isolation from those particularly vulnerable to unsocial behaviour. For example, a private investigator whom is overburdened by melancholia due to the recent death of his father. The titular protagonist is often cold, reserved and distant from the hustle and bustle of society, plainly embracing ignorance to those who attempt to converse with him. Overridden with depression, he drinks himself unconscious, waking up to a vacuous bus smothered in bleak condensation. His possessions stolen, his robust phone begins to ring to which he is greeted by a soft female voice on the other end. Attempting to postulate whom the female entity is, he investigates several clues that lead him to the path of "Phone Walking", which inevitably changes his outlook on life itself.

Nölle's Swiss-German drama Aloys is a conceptual experimentation in exploring social behavioural traits through pseudo-science, not explicitly seen since Gondry's 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'. Whilst not nearly as romantic as the aforementioned feature, Nölle opts to focus his story on isolation. That intense confinement of loneliness that drives mental well-being into inexplicable actions, including suicide. From the offset, the sparse dialogue and distant camera shots perfectly imitate Aloys unaffectionate persona to the world. Staring at his father's coffin as it rampantly catapults into a crematorium furnace. The frustration exposed on Friedrich's face whenever an outsider asks a question. A relatable, yet problematic personality that creates a barrier of connectivity with the main character. That is until the anonymous female voice enters the fray and commenced the unique "Phone Walking" exercise, which profoundly transforms a melancholic portrait into a plethora of psychological divulgence.

Nölle audaciously alters Aloys to become a sensual experience, once this neurological method springs into action. Enabling viewers to listen out for background ambience, taste the descriptions of specific food types as these two troubled individuals imagine a party, and sensitively touch specific objects depicted through vocabulary alone. The sharp editing cuts between reality and fantasy, often depicted as a barren woodland, allow audiences to share this imaginative process with both Aloys and his female counterpart. Slowly breaking down that isolated barrier once Aloys begins to comprehend this technique. The transparent alteration in Aloys' elation whenever his "virtualised" interpretation of said female joins his imaginary self, is exquisitely portrayed by Friedrich whom acutely balances fragile mentality with vulnerable fear. Whilst Nölle's direction infers a romantic partnership, the surface-level characterisation instead implies a friendship of understanding and reinforcement, which coincidentally suits these personalities more.

Various narrative bumps do seem to be discarded swiftly, including the reasoning behind the unknown female stealing his possessions in the first place and the continuation of his current investigation. However the biggest issue is the heavy-handed metaphorical equivalence for their confinement, particularly when discussing a seal believing it is still in the Atlantic, but actually imprisoned in a zoo. Whilst perfectly acceptable analogies, their inclusion negates the subtle storytelling that Nölle had effortlessly incorporated throughout. Almost a forced last attempt at conveying the mentality of these characters, yet wholly unnecessary.

Regardless, the sheer conceptualisation of virtualisation through descriptive telephone conversations to chip away at unapproachable personalities is worth the watch in itself. To accompany that refreshing technique with solitary characterisation, despite the yearning for deeper exploration, makes Aloys a desirable phone call indeed.

This movie is not only visually stunning, greatly directed and performed, but is also extremely clever and interesting. I get it, it's a slow movie! But it's also how the story is told, slow paced and detailed, that makes you feel immersed in to the characters lives and fears and frustrations. It's about the human condition and how we cope with small things in life. People who dislike this are probably Nolan fans who cant understand an extremely over-explained blockbuster movie. Worth the watch over all these brainless new titles flooding streaming services every day. 10/10