Film critic.
International Cinephile Society Contributing Writer.
"What kind of person do you want to become?"
The crescent moon and the full moon: a film about the unseen and the unsaid; intergenerational confessions in the form of improvised poetry, or how to free oneself and embrace the flow. Beautiful.
"What an adventure! We'll remember it for a long time."
I'll remember it, too.
Experiencing the world as it is. Overwhelmed by the film's images, its deeply moving peripatetic revelations, its humility, and its aliveness. A masterpiece.
At some point the main character declares that "progress is unachievable", and I feel that this beautifully encapsulates Petzold's fascination with mankind's inability to learn from the past (the political subtext regarding Berlin's architecture is quite fascinating despite its seemingly "dry" presentation). I appreciate how he embraces and subverts the basic principles of German Romanticism; there's tragedy, finality, and a deeply melancholy sense of inescapability - which is further highlighted by the exclusive and continuous use of Bach's Adagio. But…
“Normally, I don’t sleep very well. I get three or four hours sleep at best. Since coming here, I’m sleeping much better. It’s as if I’m synchronizing with that soldier. Or maybe he’s sleeping for me.“
This is the culmination of Weerasethakul’s career and quite possibly the most important film of the decade. A seamless coexistence of the political and the personal; a melancholy ode to one’s country and a moving love letter to its people. Rarely have simple gestures of genuine affection and care been depicted so beautifully in cinema.
