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71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance
It begins with a grisly mass killing. It was Christmas eve 1993 and a 19-year old student inexplicably murders several people and then kills himself. The fragmented film flashes back to October 12 and then progresses toward the fateful night. Throughout the film many characters appear and suddenly reappear.
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71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance

1994
Drama
1h 40m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 62.13% from 586 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(586)
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Rated 20 Sep 2009
87
85th
Haneke's methodical pacing and relaxed narrative style will turn some people off to this. I happen to love the movie. It's a movie that keeps you wondering where things are headed. We see a lot of different stories and a lot of different characters, and we wonder how in the world they're going to blend together, or even if they're going to. When the film is over, you realize how wrong you were to question things.
Rated 16 Nov 2009
80
54th
Not one of Haneke's best, but as far as a view of society, you could do a lot worse. All the stories worked well, although some more than others.
Rated 14 Jan 2010
79
77th
The large number of story threads keeps the narrative fresh, and most scenes say a lot even when there is little dialogue. Another bleak look at violence, repetition and loneliness in everyday life.
Rated 14 Oct 2010
91
93rd
Like 'Elephant' released nine years later, this takes a look at the several possible reasons for young people and their bursts of horrifying violence, and purposely fails to provide any answers or reasons. This may feel frustrating to some as many scenes appear to be very tangential and perhaps they are, but it'd be dangerous to draw any conclusions from this film.
Rated 24 Oct 2011
84
83rd
Keeps you guessing, on your toes, even if some of the 71 fragments drag on. Haneke doesn't really have anything different to say this time, but still pulls it off so well that despite being told what happens, the ending is startling and surreal.
Rated 23 Apr 2007
70
63rd
Doesn't give anything easily to the viewer. Either its banal and depressing reality grabs you by the balls or you bore yourself to death. Give it a try. It is surely an interesting mosaic of a story, as nearly every Haneke movie is.
Rated 08 Jul 2009
2
28th
A film worth watching. Suspenseful. But I gave it a low score anyway because films from this period of Haneke (I mean The Seventh Continent, Benny's video and 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance) somehow don't really capture me at a gut level. I don't understand why (Funny Games totally captured me, for instance). Maybe because I watched these three on DVD, maybe because I wasn't in the mood (i.e. emotionally unavailable) at the time I watched them.
Rated 01 Dec 2010
20
41st
"Michael Haneke's death-of-the-soul-of-Europe saga soldiers on with 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance, the final entry in his so-called "trilogy of emotional glacification."" - Fernando F. Croce
Rated 21 Jan 2011
55
19th
A less rewarding version of Haneke's better, later film Code Unknown.
Rated 21 Apr 2011
55
53rd
Although by this point in his career it was becoming clear that Haneke was working according to something resembling a formula, nevertheless the puzzle-like quality by which the director invites the spectator to work things out for themselves is not wholly without interest, and a scene here and there is done very well. The critique he seems to be elaborating here is probably more interesting than in most of his movies, but strangely the film itself is rather less so.
Rated 04 Sep 2011
77
57th
The weakest in Michael Haneke's "trilogy". Still decent, but it was a bit more confusing then his other movies. I found myself getting bored through all the switches between characters. Even though it tells us right from the start what's coming, it's still shocking.
Rated 11 Oct 2011
80
57th
The least of Haneke's trilogy has a lot to offer, but the blunt themes of technological alienation seem to be the sort of thing Hanake would usually eschew in favor of nuance and contradiction.
Rated 12 Oct 2011
30
1st
A great cure for insomnia. I understand the message that this movie tries to bring across, but it's boring as hell. Especially the table tennis scene. In my opinion, a movie is meant as entertainment, and this is not entertaining.
Rated 11 Aug 2012
53
39th
Haneke's early work continues to depict both domestic and social life through news of violence and also an inner tension that is easily noticed in every story -- or fragment. But what matters it's not just the way he shoots it -- in still scenes, in quick and long shots --, but also the time he takes to cut the action within the shots, giving us a calm, quiet sense of desperation. The stories are on film -- and also on TV. And Haneke keeps changing the channels. That's pure cinematic violence.
Rated 18 Aug 2012
78
67th
"Avusturya'da cocuklara cok iyi davraniyorlarmis." Repliginin koca bir yalan oldugunu ispatlayan 1993 yapimi cinnet filmi.
Rated 26 Oct 2012
60
34th
* Casting, Acting : 6 * Script : 7 * Directing, Aura : 7 * Ease of Viewing : 4 * Naked Eye : 6
Rated 21 May 2013
70
44th
71 Fragments is one of the clearest examples of Haneke's belief, and a belief I agree with wholeheartedly, that we cannot judge someone as we do not know their whole situation. That we view other people's lives in fragments and just see events rather than the whole of a situation. We can try to explain people's actions, but those explanations may well be wrong or at the very least are somewhat reductive. Fascinating, though the Brechtian alienation was pushed a bit too far for my tastes.
Rated 02 Oct 2013
73
46th
73.000
Rated 20 Dec 2013
5
70th
with one of the most awesome titles ever, the film doesn't quite live up to its moniker. a puzzle-like structure details with some interest the banality of evil acts, and the triviality that sometimes marks the events and motives leading up to them. however, the stripped down aesthetic of the film isn't exactly the most appealing or unique way of presenting those ideas, and it is extremely obvious from the outset where the film is going and how it will get there.
Rated 15 Aug 2017
80
78th
vio-lens
Rated 03 Apr 2018
63
27th
Scenes just dragged on...didn't feel like the message was profound enough in the end to warrant that.
Rated 13 Nov 2019
80
57th
Haneke's manipulative pace and bleak vision on society continues to be violent, dissatisfying and alienating - but drills what it is trying to say.
Rated 23 Nov 2019
50
14th
This is a somewhat thought provoking film which follows a number of characters in the same city, seemingly unconnected, with the viewer knowing whats coming. The characters are interesting - I liked seeing things from different peoples perspectives. Its sad and with an obvious over hanging sense of inevitability. While it does visually seem perhaps a bit like a documentary, I didn't feel it was entirely dull, instead I wanted to see what events took place, to culminate in what happened.
Rated 12 Jul 2020
55
24th
It's a good snapshot of a city and its people, but as with any city, some people are gonna be more boring than others (looking at you, old guy who wouldn't get off the phone for like 5 minutes).
Rated 08 Jan 2022
5
56th
kötü bir zamanda izledim.
Rated 05 Oct 2023
80
87th
I heard Haneke say this film more or less failed and he re-did it with Code Unknown, using a less fragmented, more 1 take, approach. I actually prefer 71 one over Code Unknown and it's more experimental in nature. As usual with Haneke the viewer, being the spectator to all the mundane things, is actively involved in the party. I love myself a good last scene that lingers and this ending, showing the looped news cycle, is fantastic, a sort of echo of common news consumption antics

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