Rowan Sullivan, Author at FilmRoot

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Ajami

Film Difficulty Ranking: 3

On Mubi, Ajami is compared to Brazil’s City of God for it’s use of non-actors and gritty look at life in a city. But I think it compares better with Amores Perros because of it’s narrative structure. Produced by both a Palestinian and an Israeli, this film sheds light on what seems to be an unbiased look at Israel. Building until the last puzzle piece is added, the Academy Award nominee Ajami is one to watch!

Why Watch Ajami?

Get a feel for race relations in Israel – the role of borders and race relations makes Ajami a lot more relevant than some might think.
What drives someone to do something out of character?
Looking for a cleverly layered multiple narrative like Amores Perros, Traffic, or Magnolia? Look no further.
Be amazed at the auction-style way that family disputes are solved.

Breakdown

Nasri, Omar’s younger brother, narrates the opening as he draws a comic book. He introduces us to his neighbour who is fixing Omar’s car and then to his grandpa who he takes care of and washes due to his paralysis. It all seems pretty normal, pretty pleasant. Then two men riding on a motorbike pass by and shoot Nasri’s neighbour fixing their car.

From this point the film takes on a City of God feel as Nasri takes us back in time to explain what events led his neighbour to be shot. After this introduction, the film switches stylistically to a more natural, documentary like style. The colours become washed out, the dialogue takes centre stage, and the music is noticeably absent.

In addition, things happen really quickly. The dialogue is very punchy and snappy, not because of what the characters are saying, but how quickly people respond to each other. The narrative matches the fast pace of the dialogue. A birthday surprise happens so quickly that I felt almost suspicious of it’s authenticity. This made me start to question the authenticity of every character in the film. A lot of them are forced to act outside of their normal character.

Ajami’s genius lies in it’s narratives which are linked in non-chronological order. They come together to create a fatalistic quilt made of interlinking religions, races, and emotions.

Ajami is “a sustained gaze into a widening, all-encompassing trap” – Eric Hynes at Indiewire

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Phenomena

Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

Phenomena sure is unique. Yes, it has a lot of the usual characteristics that form the horror genre but, it is definitely not your typical horror flick. Phenomena follows the daughter of a famous American actor who has a strong psychic connection with insects. She is sent to a Swiss boarding school in an area where some girls have been disappearing. And, of course, she sleepwalks.

Why Watch Phenomena?

In addition to the insect-girl mentioned above, this film features an old man in a wheelchair and his pet chimpanzee.
It’s backed by a very loud 80s heavy metal soundtrack to provide some relief to some of the more tense moments.
Lucky for you, there’s no subtitles – it’s mostly in English despite being an Italian film.
Ever wondered what a horror remake of the Sound of Music might look like? Well here’s your chance to find out.

The Breakdown

Phenomena starts in a Swiss Alpine setting. A yellow bus pulls up at a bus stop, picks up a few passengers from a tour group and drives off. As the camera follows the bus (moving on a 180 degree axis) we hear someone shouting “wait”. The camera moves back to the left to see a girl running up to the camera. She’s missed the bus. So what does she do? She goes to explore a house nearby. To her, the house looks empty. But to us, we see shots of some chains being pulled from the wall… she has company!!!

In the opening ‘scare’ the monster is concealed from view. We see the girl running away from the monster through the monsters eyes and we see shots of the girl running, but never shots of the monster itself. This continues deep into the film to build up our fear of the unknown. Revealing the killer would end the build up of tension. (although the heavy metal music seems to weaken the potential scare factor).

Another method the director uses to build tension is to quickly cut between perspectives. For example, later in the film our young American girl is exploring an abandoned house. As she walks up to the house Argento (the director) cuts between her 1st person perspective, a 3rd person perspective view from behind her back, and another establishing shot, to show where she is (in a field in the Swiss Alps walking to a wooden house). This combination of perspectives disorientates the viewer, and stops the viewer from anticipating what will happen, which leads to a greater shock.

If you’re looking for an 80s horror film with a dash of psychedelia and a dash of heavy metal, then Phenomena is for you. Enjoy.

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Lupe Under the Sun (Lupe Bajo El Sol) – London Film Festival 2016

Film Difficulty Ranking: 4

Lupe Under the Sun features an ageing migrant worker from Michoacan working in California’s Central Valley. It deals with the vagueness of migrant identity – is Lupe Mexican or American? Or both and neither at the same time? The director, Rodrigo Reyes, shows migration to be both an inspired act of hope and a frightening leap into the unknown.

Why Watch Lupe Under the Sun?

For a timely look at the life of a lonely migrant worker in the U.S. a group verbally assaulted by Trump
To see an old man riding a tricycle
Step in somebody else’s shoes – take a walk through the eyes of an immigrant worker in an unfamiliar environment which you call home
What does it mean to not belong?

The Breakdown

The film starts with a narration by Lupe’s grandson as Lupe walks through arid landscape and orchards.

He says that his grandfather told him a secret; that he was going to America to paint a really big house that will take him a long time. He won’t be back for some time, because he has to keep painting.

Does Lupe really belong here? He doesn’t talk to anyone, except one scene where he is gambling around a small table with two other guys. He doesn’t answer his girlfriend, he mumbles back to the doctor, and doesn’t make any effort to start any conversation. His lack of dialogue emphasises his lack of belonging and identity. He has no friends and no one he cares about in the Central Valley. He has no reason to stay where he is or go home.

Furthermore, his days are occupied by ritual. He wakes up at 4am each morning, cooks his eggs, showers, and shaves his moustache before he gets picked up to go pick fruit. Each day we are shown this same ritual emphasised by fixed shots of the alarm clock, the cooking hob, and the kitchen sink. The repeated shots emphasise the mundaneness of Lupe’s life – is he brave for sticking out this monotone life? His only joy seems to come from riding his tricycle around town.

Why is Lupe living here? Why doesn’t he go back to Mexico where he might feel a little more belonging? Lupe is symbolic of the ‘no-man’s land’ of migrant identity – he is both the man of his past life in Mexico and the man of his present in the U.S. Pick this one for a quiet night in to watch with someone else – watching it alone might make you question your loneliness.

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Neruda

Film Buff Ranking: 3

Neruda is a rather special take on the famous Chilean poets life. Instead of focusing on his fabulous poetry, Neruda focuses on his Pablo’s run from persecution for being a communist. Throughout, Neruda is being hunted by a police inspector named Peluchonneau. In all, the film reminded me of a Borgesian short story with a hilariously Quixotic character.

Why watch Neruda?

You have read and enjoyed Borges
Multiple narratives – try and follow this one! Is it real?
Chilean history -communist persecution (for more on communist persecution, see a real account of the Indonesian death squads here)
For an interesting take on the biopic (think of Frida)

The Breakdown

The film starts with cameras following Neruda through a crowd. He makes his way through a government building greeting people next to him. He finally makes it through to a room where the president and the other senators are (for Neruda is also a senator), goes straight over to the urinal conveniently placed at the side of the room and berates the president out loud whilst he is taking a piss. What a scene! It certainly sets it up for a rather surreal and jovial film.

Neruda is a masterful invention. The character of Peluchonneau, played by the wonderful Gabriel Garcia Bernal, a character invented to embellish Neruda’s reputation. He is Neruda’s (or the director’s Larrain’s) puppet, a tool to show Neruda’s creative vision. Even the name Peluchonneau is perfect, as “peluche” in Spanish refers to a stuffed animal toy. This is exactly what Peluchonneau is, a character that is invented, used to entertain us, and then forgotten when we grow older. Luckily for the film and for us, the director and screenwriters script him perfectly.

Just like in Y Tu Mama Tambien, the events at the front of the screen take centre stage. You can see the effects of the communist persecution in the background. People are being dragged off to concentration camps, homeless kids are wandering the streets begging for money, and indigenous populations are being subjected to landlords. Furthermore these landlords deliberately break the law, just because the government does not care about them anyway. This is the real post-WW2 Chile, not the Chile concerned with a fictional or non-fictional chase of Neruda that pre-occupied everything else.

Conclusion

Neruda is definitely worth a watch. Fans of literature will love the construction of Pelloneau and his fictional existence. It is a little bit of a fight club in this regard. Pelloneau could not exist without Neruda and Neruda’s excellence is heightened by Pelloneau. As a Latin America Literature lover, this truly captured the unique spirit of the continent.

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The Bait – London Film Festival 2016

Film Difficulty Ranking: 3

Another great film from the London Film Festival, The Bait explores the lives of a mix of people from Bengal. The Bait features an eclectic mix of characters: a young circus tightrope walker who tours the land with her parents, a postman who renounces his life to live up a tree with some monkeys, and a Rajah trying to capture his past glory by killing a tiger. There is magical realism, strong political undercurrents, and plenty of beautiful scenery.

Why Watch this Film?

For eccentric characters! One middle-aged man that dances in his palace, and another that lives up a tree with monkeys
See beautiful scenery – you’ll feel as if you’ve travelled to Bengal
It’s by an award winning Indian film maker – Buddhadeb Dasgupta
See the magic of anime brought to live action

The Breakdown

The film starts with old music playing from an old gramophone. An middle-aged man (the old Rajah) dances round and round a door frame in the middle of grassy hills. Is this a dream? Probably not. This is the eccentric Rajah, a man whose family has always held power in these lands until recently. His power is questioned by some documentary makers who do not believe he can catch a tiger.

The Rajah always plays old music, and always plays it on his old gramophone which he takes wherever he goes. The old music reminds him of the past glory of his family, something that is fading rapidly. He can’t even entertain his wife, a woman trapped in his palace. Instead of adapting to modernity, he tries to recapture his former glory by going on a quest to kill a tiger.

Outside of the three main characters, the film is dominated by the beautiful Bengali landscape. The rolling green hills, the dry lands, and the marshy swampland captures the diversity of Bengal (which is also captured in the characters). Instead of city noise, we hear birds, monkeys, water – everything that is lost in the city. The country is always full of life. The only evidence of built up civilisation were a few electricity pylons in the far background of one shot and the grand palace of the Rajah slowly being covered with moss.

The Bait is like a collection of fables. Each storyline portrays a different part of society, from the rich Rajah to the wandering street performers. Their social statuses are clear throughout and their identification creates the strong political undercurrent. Is there still a semi-caste system in India? Under the magical realism and humour, it seems that Dasgupta believes there still is.