As in her previous film, “Trees”, Sophie Bruneau needs only one object to describe a whole world. In this case it’s barbed wire that tells a parallel history of the settlement of America. What started out as a useful tool to fence in animals leads to the staking of claims and the large-scale privatisation of land and ultimately to the sealing of the Mexican border against economic refugees. The former myth of the Wild West and the still popular phrase “God’s own Country” are taken ad absurdum in the face of the forest of private property signs and the gating frenzy. After all, individualisation and industrialisation come at a price. The land has long ceased to be a landscape and turned into mere arable territory. These facts are not devoid of a certain humour, which Sophie Bruneau brings out calmly in “Devil's Rope”. With gusto and a few surprising twists she depicts the origin and rich variety of this simple wire in grand tableaux. The references implied in the images to the original American movie genre, the Western, add to our enjoyment.
Cornelia Klauß

Fireworks burst into the sky above Texas – perceived light years away from the idyllic town where 14-year-old Sara is growing up as the oldest daughter of a large family of goat farmers. She takes tender care of the animals and the manufacture of various dairy products; helps raise her siblings who are home-schooled like her – according to a strict interpretation of the bible. Nearby, cowboys from the neighbourhood organise rodeos, showing us an America we have long believed forgotten. Sara’s inner conflict between her subtle attraction to the young bull-rider Colby and her future as a devout wife emerges almost imperceptibly.
The great lucidity of the narrative culminates as a child slips out of the mother’s womb in front of Sara’ eyes, confronting her directly with her destiny. The camera “breathes” incredibly close to the protagonists, capturing that inner turmoil in tender pastels. It makes the heart pound so hard that Sara’s mother can only pray for it to finally stop going crazy.

Claudia Lehmann

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Golden Dove International Competition Documentary Film 2013