dir. Shira Geffen & Etgar Keret
writ. Shira Geffen
The modern independent film now has stock characters. The grumpy, impossible-to-satisfy mother that will never approve of her daughter's choices. The hard-working immigrant often considered dumb because she doesn't know the language. The newly married wife who is jealous of every woman her husband sees.
We don't want to see these characters anymore. They broadcast a certain kind of story, eliminating the chances of surprise and eradicating the possibility of redemption since I will be annoyed by them for far too long to forgive them when they change their ways. Go ahead, shove the mother off a cliff. See if I care. Just take her off the screen.
Thankfully, there are some beautiful moments, and while the circular tale of the little girl mysteriously walking out of the ocean may not fully resonate when it ends as a memory of her caretaker's younger days with arguing parents, at least it's alluring and arouses some curiosity.
I only just learned that the filmmaking team are a married couple, both fiction writers. I thoroughly enjoy Keret's writing and wish he had a hand in the writing of this film as well. The movement of the characters feels like his stories though the words do not, and that is unfortunate.
No comments:
Post a Comment