Illumination Film Difficulty Ranking: 4
If you love film and philosophy, Illumination might be the film for you. It’s like watching an existential essay: you’ll follow the main character as he stumbles through life trying to find meaning. It’s experimental and brilliant. Watch the film here (Buy on Amazon).
Why Watch Illumination?
- You love philosophy (bonus points if you love existential philosophy)
- Or if you love science (some parts are not for the squeamish)
- Or if you don’t know what to do with your life and want to watch someone else who struggles to find meaning in theirs
- It’s experimental – the editing will remind you of Bergman’s Persona (if you haven’t seen Persona watch it now)
The Breakdown
“What is illumination? Illumination is a term and concept of Augustine. We obtain knowledge by an enlightenment of the mind.”
The film starts by musing what the meaning of illumination is. Then it cuts to a half naked man taking a medical check. The camera cuts from a close up of his hand to a close up of his foot. Then someone asks the male subject for his name, his surname, his place of birth, height, and weight. In this opening, Zanussi (the director) reduces Franciszek to his physical being before we’ve had a chance to get to know him. This raw physical being is the starting point of this philosophical film essay.
After we meet Franciszek the film flashes to ‘reality’. You’ll see footage of the moon landing, and troops marching ready for war. These images quickly provide us with context. From them we can assume that the film is set in the late 1960s/early 1970s during the Cold War between the U.S. and U.S.S.R. These cuts of footage are also included to disrupt the rhythm of the film. Zanussi includes a lot of interjections like this in his film to intentionally jumble up the story. His intention is to show us the mess of images we see during our lifetimes and to make it difficult to follow the film, to reflect the struggle to find meaning in life.
Conclusion and What to Watch Next
There is a story-line in Illumination (the story of Franciszek) but it is hard to follow. Zanussi only uses Franciszek’s life as a framework for the film’s progression. Franciszek’s struggle to find enlightenment is the framework for the film’s commentary on the world’s struggle to find meaning in life. (Warning: you may be filled with existential angst/dread when watching this film).
First up, you need to watch Ingmar Bergman’s Persona if you haven’t already. It’s one of the best explorations of the human psyche (and at a level above David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive).
For more from Zanussi, I strongly recommend watching The Structure of Crystal before this one. It’s easier to watch and is one of those films that makes you feel at peace with life and death (a bit like Wild Strawberries).
Or for more straight up philosophy check out the stream of conscious genius of My Dinner With Andre.
','' ); } ?>