MJFF – The Glory of Life
The Glory of Life
George Maas & Judith Kaufmann, Germany, 2024, 98min
Language: German with English subtitles
In the last year of his life, Franz Kafka experiences his greatest happiness, finding intimacy and acceptance with the worldly Dora Diamant despite his tuberculosis and overbearing family. Their paths serendipitously cross in 1923 on the Baltic Sea coast, where Kafka is convalescing, and Dora works at a nearby Jewish community. What begins with exchanged notes and sweet rendezvous on the beach blossoms into a profound love story. Together, they journey to Berlin and then to an Austrian sanatorium as Kafka’s health declines, proving that death holds no power over true love. Their brief but profound time together leaves a lasting mark on Dora.
The Glory of Life, based on Michael Kumpfmüller’s best-selling novel, stands apart from previous Kafka adaptations—from Orson Welles’ The Trial (1962) to Steven Soderbergh’s Kafka (1991) to Michael Haneke’s The Castle (1997)—by highlighting this period of joy, rather than the usual themes of angst and existential dread. With a delicate touch, the film envelops viewers in Kafka’s and Dora’s affection, capturing not just the inner life of a literary legend, but a fragile, exquisite love story for the ages.
