The DOCNYC film festival recently wrapped up and despite being in Florida for most of the holidays, I was able to watch a selection of films thanks to their virtual screenings available. Given that appearing at DOCNYC is pretty much a prerequisite to getting an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary Feature, as well as the fact that many of these films double as their country’s submission for Best International Feature (with one also doubling as an animated feature), I figured I’d try to get ahead of the Oscars Death Race by watching what I could, and to kill two birds with one stone by doing a series of mini reviews for Contra Zoom.
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood (dir Anna Hints, Estonia’s submission for International Feature)
Final Rating: 3/5
On its surface, this documentary elegantly captures two things at once – the UNESCO listed Voro smoke sauna tradition, and the act of women partaking in said tradition baring their insecurities and trauma. In particular, the intimate cinematography to capture their naked bodies against the light and smoke without feeling exploitative or leering is masterfully done. At the same time, I personally felt it was difficult to connect to the subjects. One part of this may be that I’m a cis-male who will never really understand their experience. But even beyond that, the lack of a narrative structure (aside from the changing of the seasons) or a “protagonist” (as much as a documentary can have one) to emotionally connect to made it hard to get too emotionally invested. Part of which is probably due to the choice of some women wishing to remain anonymous and not have their faces shown, which I understand. Cynically, perhaps it’s that unfortunately many of their stories feel universal and not really specific to Estonian women and their circumstances. On the other end, I would have loved a bit more depth into the specifics of the sauna tradition, which is what really sets this film apart. Overall, I appreciate what this film is trying to do, but for me it lacked the specificity and structure to really be counted among the best documentaries out there.
The Mother of All Lies (dir Asmae El Moudir, Morocco’s submission for International Feature)
Final Rating: 4/5
In contrast to the previous film, The Mother of All Lies really does justify its presentation through its narrative. Because her grandmother didn’t allow family portraits in their household growing up, the story is told through miniatures created in a studio by the director and her father. Through these dioramas, they trace the trauma of her family and neighbors in relation to the 1981 Casablanca bread riots. Through this approach to this deeply personal story, we as an audience start to tackle questions of how generational trauma bleeds into our lives and lingers, and what it means to see yourself represented in ways that vary from how you see yourself. While it doesn’t have a neat tidy ending (which frankly I wouldn’t expect it to), the combination of innovative storytelling medium alongside a compelling narrative only this team could tell makes this one worth watching.
Beyond Utopia (dir Madeleine Gavin)
Final Rating: 4/5
Following two stories of North Koreans attempting to flee to South Korea, this film kind of ticks every box that I’m looking for from a good documentary. It brought to light some aspect or element of the world that is worth hearing and learning about. It provides enough context through talking heads where I don’t have to do my own research to fully understand the film in question. It has unique, on the ground footage captured in a way that could not really be replicated and could only be seen as part of the subject’s lived experience. And most importantly, while it doesn’t claim to be one tidy neat story, it does over the course of its runtime tell a complete story with rising and falling arcs and characters to root for. If there is perhaps one quibble, while I understand the need of a B-plot of an escape that ultimately fails, the fact that it was told mostly via telephone calls (in contrast to the footage of the family that is ultimately successful) feels somewhat uneven. However in the end the greatest recommendation I can give this film is that I was willing to watch it a second time the next day with my family who hadn’t seen it.
They Shot the Piano Player (dir Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal)
Final Rating: 2/5
From the Oscar nominated directing pair behind 2010’s Chico and Rita, They Shot the Piano Player told the story of a journalist (voiced by Jeff Goldblum) who discovers the story of a Brazilian Bossa Nova piano player Tenorio Junior who has presumably killed during Argentina’s 1976 dictatorship. While I always admire the attempt to make the full use of the animation medium to tell stories, I can’t say this was wholly successful. The parts where it hits – reimagining the energetic music scene of Brazil in the 70s – truly does make the music pop on screen in a way in the same way it cradles your ears. However, the framing narrative around Tenorio’s story feels superfluous. Even if the story of Tenorio is a somewhat interesting microcosm of how South American military dictatorships negatively impacted the arts and common people, the fact that they frame it within a larger narrative of this New Yorker journalist “discovering” this “mysterious” story when in fact his story had kind of been known since the 80s made it all seem uninspired at best and self-important at worst. The use of the semi rotoscoped animation for the interview segments (with too many talking heads who are barely introduced with the understanding that you know that they’re a big deal within bossa nova history) cheapens the effect – perhaps if they had saved the animated segments for the flashbacks to really drive that impact it would have been a justified use. Ultimately this has a lot of disparate parts that while individually may be interesting, came together in a way that was less than the sum of its parts.
20 Days in Mariupol (dir Mstyslav Chernov, Ukraine’s submission for International Feature)
Final Rating: 4/5
Okay a quick confession – I actually didn’t get to watch this with my DOCNYC pass before it expired, but fortunately this one is available on PBS Frontline’s channel at the time of writing. In any case, this film follows the on the ground footage of Associated Press reporters during the first twenty days of the Russian invasion on Ukraine last year, centered in the titular city of Mariupol. Much like Beyond Utopia, it uses footage that couldn’t have been captured in any other way as it follows the lived experiences of its subjects. There is less framing of the context of the war, though given how the subject matter has been a part of our lives for the last few years it probably doesn’t need it. In fact, it probably elevates the film given that in the moment on the ground, the citizens of Mariupol also lacked context. The only framing we do receive are news broadcasts overseas that use the footage we have just viewed, turning the film into a celebration of the importance of press in these critical moments of history in addition to a condemnation of war. It perhaps doesn’t tie up as nicely as Beyond Utopia does in its narrative with a clear conclusion, but with the war still ongoing, that’s kind of the point The only technical quibble might be that the director’s voiceover perhaps isn’t the most engaging to listen to, but I can respect the decision to recount his tale as he lived it and the footage he shows on screen more than makes up for it. The other issue is more a me issue – given the recent events in Gaza, seeing more war footage here in addition to what I see on my social media feeds, I can’t deny that watching this was exhausting. But from my relatively privileged position of not living in an active war zone, perhaps bearing witness to these atrocities, no matter where they take place, is the least I can do.
Comments
Comments are closed.