Before We Grow Old
Summer in Berlin. Maria and Niels, both from Berlin, and Chloe, a student from the United Kingdom, are three people in their twenties. As they lasciviously float through Berlin, they immediately throw themselves headfirst into a careless and disorderly love affair with one another. They embrace the spirit of enjoying life to the fullest by seizing anything and anything that comes their way. Their only apparent compass appears to be the joy they derive from being together, which serves them admirably up to the point where Chloe unexpectedly becomes pregnant. It is at this point when feelings of insecurity, wrath, envy, and distrust emerge. It was decided not to go through with the abortion. Who is allowed to have a voice, when is it allowed, and on what topic is it allowed? Their peculiar triad falls apart, and their previously stable connection transforms into a series of shifting constellations involving just the two of them. This continues until it appears that it may be possible to reestablish a fragile equilibrium, at least temporarily. Is the Utopia we want within our grasp, or are we only experiencing the lull before the storm? It takes effort to love in a different way. The world will not be ready for Maria, Niels, and Chloe for quite some time. Neither are either of them.