Kalinka (film)

In 2009, French police arrest André Bamberski at his house. He is immediately taken into custody and then charged by the investigating judge with the kidnapping and aggravated false imprisonment of Dr. Dieter Krombach. In 1974, André and his wife Danièle "Dany" live in Morocco. They have a daughter, Kalinka, and a son, Pierre. André runs a small business and therefore tends to neglect his family a little. Dany introduces André to Dr. Dieter Krombach, a German who lives nearby. Kalinka is a friend of Krombach's daughter.

Krombach invites the children to his home. Dany is charmed by this caring man. When Dany tells Krombach they are going on a winter sports trip, he insists on accompanying them. On a mountain road, while André is driving, the car leaves the road in a hairpin bend. Kalinka and André are injured and hospitalized. Krombach visits the Bamberskis in their hospital room and gives Kalinka a gift. He drops Dany off in the car. They kiss as they part. Back in Morocco, André searches for a file for his work. He discovers audio cassettes in German and realizes that Dany is having an affair with Krombach.

That evening, Dany promises to end the affair. André decides they must leave Morocco and return to France. On the platform, as they are about to board, Krombach discreetly joins Dany and tells her he doesn't want to leave her. The Bamberskis settle near Pau. Danièle, who was unemployed, announces that she has found a temporary job in Nice at a real estate agency; she will then be in charge of the local agency. André follows her by car to Nice. He notices that she is going to an apartment where Krombach lives. He hires a bailiff and goes in with him to have a report of fraud drawn up. In 1982, The Bamberskis have divorced. André is moving in with his new girlfriend, Cécile. Dany is living with Krombach in Lindau on the shores of Lake Constance.

André decides to go on a vacation with Cécile while Kalinka and Pierre are on vacation at Krombach's, with Dany. André accompanies Kalinka and Pierre to the airport. André and Cécile enjoy their vacation together. Lindau, Germany One evening, Dany calls André to tell him that Kalinka is dead. André is devastated. Shortly after, André comes to identify Kalinka's body. Dany tells him that she will be autopsied so she can be repatriated. At Krombach's, André asks him to explain the circumstances of Kalinka's death. Krombach tells him that she suffered a heart attack due to heatstroke, or perhaps also the consequences of the accident that occurred eight years earlier.

He had given her an injection of iron solution earlier that day to help her tan. He gave her more injections to try to revive her, but it was in vain. Back in France, André was surprised not to have received the autopsy results. He phoned Dany to send him a copy by registered mail. Since the autopsy report was in German, he asked a German teacher to translate it for him. The two guys were appalled by what it said. Kalinka had probably been raped. He went to Lindau to ask Dany for an explanation.

In 1983, Following a request for further investigation and an appeal to the German prosecutor, he realized that the justice system was unwilling to pursue the matter. He decided, with the help of the German teacher, to distribute leaflets in the town where Krombach lived. Forced to leave Germany, he then called upon a French lawyer specializing in international criminal law, who agreed and initiated proceedings. However, Krombach obstructed the proceedings and decided not to respond to the French court's request. André Bamberski succeeded in having a new autopsy performed on Kalinka, but it yielded no results because the girl had her genitals removed before her body was repatriated to France. 1987 - A new investigating judge was appointed. He obtained all the samples.

In 1988, The new expert reports confirmed that Kalinka died following a coma induced by a drug injection. In 1990, Danièle, Kalinka's mother, returned to France and was questioned by the judge. However, the confrontation with his ex-wife yielded no results; she refused to acknowledge Krombach's responsibility. The French courts decide to prosecute the German doctor, who can no longer escape trial in France. In 1995, Krombach is sentenced in absentia to 15 years in prison. The lawyer explains that the German government appears to have put pressure on the French courts, which would explain the apparent leniency of the sentence. However, the international warrant is not released, and Krombach is still not arrested. Bamberski and his lawyer alert the press, which allows for further investigation.

The proceedings are still ongoing, but Krombach is still not in prison. However, thanks to a German journalist, he learns that the doctor has been arrested for rape. In 1997, Krombach is tried in Germany, but only for this rape. Bamberski attends the trial, and Krombach tries in vain to have him removed from the courtroom. The raped lady explains that the doctor gave her an injection before abusing her. This confession sickens Bamberski, who then understands how his daughter died. Krombach is found guilty and sentenced, but having pleaded guilty and given up practicing medicine, he receives a suspended sentence. Bamberski returns to see his ex-wife, but he still fails to convince her.

From then on, Bamberski, knowing that Krombach can no longer practice in Germany, tries to have him arrested by the police in neighboring countries, and as a result, Krombach is arrested at a train station in Austria. Meanwhile, exasperated by his obsession, his girlfriend leaves him. More bad news for Bamberski: Austria releases Krombach, who returns to Germany. Kalinka's father accuses France of collusion with the German judicial authorities and wants to denounce the French justice system, but his lawyer decides not to follow his lead. André Bamberski returns to Germany to find out where the doctor has gone, but he has been accused by a woman and imprisoned. Kalinka's father decides to follow him when he is released and notes his new address.

In 2009, Krombach is abducted in front of his home in Germany by three dudes who lock him in a car trunk. They then cross the French border. One of the boys knocks him unconscious and leaves him on a sidewalk on a quayside in Mulhouse. Shortly after, the three guys are arrested by the police. Arrested, Bamberski was taken to prison, then released following his placement under judicial order, and his former lawyer decided to resume working with him. Barely out of custody, Bamberski warned the prosecutor that Krombach should not be released and decided to speak to the press.

The German doctor was imprisoned and scheduled for a retrial. André Bamberski went to visit his daughter's grave and discuss the reasons for his commitment. At the entrance to the cemetery, he encountered his ex-wife as she was leaving. They looked at each other for a moment without speaking and continued their separate ways. A notice soberly explained that Krombach had been sentenced to 15 years in prison for aggravated assault resulting in death without intent to cause death, with the rape theory not having been accepted. André Bamberski received a one-year suspended sentence for kidnapping.

• Daniel Auteuil as André Bamberski
• Marie-Josée Croze as Dany
• Sebastian Koch as Dieter Krombach
• Christelle Cornil as Cécile
• Lilas-Rose Gilberti as Kalinka (6-year-old)
• Emma Besson as Kalinka (14-year-old)
• Christian Kmiotek as Robert
• Serge Feuillard as Maître Gibault
• Fred Personne as Bamberski's Father

{{reflist}}

• {{IMDb title|4228810|Au nom de ma fille}}

Category:2016 films

Category:2010s French-language films

Category:French drama films

Category:German drama films

Category:French films about revenge

Category:German films about revenge

Category:StudioCanal films

Category:Drama films based on actual events

Category:2016 drama films

Category:2010s French films

Category:2010s German films

Category:Films scored by Nicolas Errèra

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