“The Privilege,” titled Das Privileg in German, is a horror film, directed by Felix Fuchssteiner and Katharina Schode, that focuses on the journey of a young teenager named Finn. At first glance, Finn looked like an eccentric teenager who had a hard time coping with people. He was an introverted person who didn’t have many friends, kept things to himself, and was constantly in a battle with past trauma. Lena was his only friend, a confidant with whom he shared everything. They were the two weirdos who found comfort in each other as the rest of the world was too insensitive to stop and understand what they were going through.
Finn comes from a wealthy family, and we see from the start that his parents are more than caring and protective of him and his twin sister, Sophie. Finch’s mom even accompanies him to his doctor’s appointment, showing her involvement in his life. But as the story progresses, we come to know that the involvement had a very different motive. So let’s dissect “The Privilege” and try to understand the narrative and interpret the open ends.
‘The Privilege’ Plot Summary
“The Privilege” opens with a scene where Finn is left in the custody of his elder sister, Anna, while his parents go out with his twin sister, Sophie. As soon as they leave, Finn hears muffled voices from Ann’s room. Anna comes out of the room, with her mouth smeared in blood. Finn is perplexed as to what is going on. Anna was holding a knife, and she herself had cut her mouth. Finn can not understand why his sister is doing that. Why is she hurting herself? Just then, he sees an abominable creature lurking just behind Anna. It felt like the creature was made from dust particles and germinated fungal spores put together. They run from the house, but Anna is still paranoid, and Finn still does not understand what she is doing. She stops the car on a bridge and tells Finn to get out of the car. She crosses the railing and commands Finn to do the same. A petrified Finn does what his elder sister says. She goes further down and starts hanging from the bridge, and tells Finn to jump with her, as it was the only way they could escape that devilish creature. Finn is not ready to jump from the bridge. He kicks Anna, who was holding his leg, and forces him to jump. She falls from the bridge and meets her fateful end.
Years later, when Finn sits in a session with his doctor, Dr. Steinke, who tells him that he still carries a heavy burden of guilt, he blames himself for what happened to Anna. She says that the trauma has affected a part of the brain so much that it cannot function properly. She prescribes him a medicine named Trychozepam. The medicine was meant to lower the anxiety. But guess what, Dr. Steinke had an ulterior motive too, something that she hid from Finn. Snippets of obscure information are revealed when Finn meets his grandfather in the hospital. He tells Finn that he once performed an exorcism on a sick kid. Before leaving for his operation, he also tells Finn that he will see him again. The conviction with which he said that created a sense of mystery, as this was a man who was on his deathbed. But he knew something that Finn, Lena, and Samira didn’t.
What was Trondthal?
Finn starts seeing a lot of things that his parents and doctor term “hallucinations.” He cannot differentiate between what is real and what is just an imagination of a troubled mind. One night, he sees a very unusual sight. He sees his parents and his sister, Sophie, sitting in their living room together with many others whom he didn’t know. An unknown man helps his sister to take out her robes, and an extremely old lady strips herself too, and starts moving towards his sister. Finn wakes up after some time and finds himself surrounded by his parents and doctor, who tell him that he was sleepwalking once again.
When things start getting out of hand, Finn, Lena, and Samira (Finn’s love interest) decide to take things into their own hands. They find out that they were all adopted by their parents. Their parents were running a cult for generations. Finn’s grandfather had adopted his father too. When his grandfather told him about performing an exorcism on a sick child, he was referring to Finn’s father only. He had met Trondthal, the demonic spirit, and joined forces with him to create this cult.
On the face of it, Trondthal Medical and Research Facility was just like any other organization working for the betterment of humankind. But it was just a contrivance to keep the demonic cult behind the curtains and operate it effectively. The medicine that was given by Dr. Steinko to Finn was actually not meant for treating anxiety attacks. Taking Trychozepam opened the gates of hell. It allowed the cult to put a fungus that grew on dead bodies inside every individual that took that medicine. In a generation where so many people suffer from depression and anxiety, the members of the cult knew that their task would become so much easier, as the patients would take it themselves, under the pretext of medication.
‘The Privilege’ Ending Explained
Finn and Samira find themselves strapped to a chair. Finn is led into a room where his parents, sister, and Dr. Steinko, as well as other cult members, are already seated. Finn saw his grandfather lying on the bed next to him. The ritual was the same thing that took place that night when Finn was told that he was sleepwalking. It was a process to transfer the vessel which acted as a host to the devil. The ones who held it had now become old, and new, younger vessels were required for that creature to stay alive. Each and every member of the cult was a mere vessel. But before they could perform the ritual, Lena breaks in and burns the place down, then escapes with Finn and Samira.
The trio decides to escape to a place where no one knows them. But escape was not so easy. In the last shot, the creature had entered Samira’s home, as they had been exposed to the fungus while driving in the car.
Moreover, they saw a billboard for Trychozepam on the side of the road. It meant that the fatal medicine was readily available for public use. It was no longer under trial and had been approved by the authorities. It meant that they could not trust anyone, as anybody could be under the influence of demonic energy.
