On Wednesday (April 19), the 13th Achtung Berlin festival gets underway with opening night offering Beat Beat Heart (photo), an acclaimed indie tearjerker by Luise Brinkmann. It kicks off an impressively eclectic week-long programme of films produced in Berlin-Brandenburg. Check out our preview for further highlights and news about Exberliner’s involvement. On general release this week, Nate Parker’s The Birth of a Nation, perhaps 2016’s most controversial film, finally reaches German shores. Now that the media frenzy surrounding its triumphant Sundance premiere, and the unpleasant revelations about Parker’s personal life that followed, has died down, all we’re left with is a ham-fisted retelling of an undeniably important African American story. Stephen Gaghan’s Gold is another mediocre mess inspired by true events, only partially redeemed by Matthew McConaughey’s committed central performance. Denial, which tells the true story of a legal battle between Nazi Germany scholars, is laudably committed to historical accuracy, but Rachel Weisz fails to elicit sympathy in the lead role. Finally, Below Her Mouth is a steamy lesbian drama that’s as ridiculous as its title.