Once in a while a film grabs me and won't let me go.
This was the case with Dare mo shiranai (Nobody Knows), Absolutely Positive, and Iklimler (Climates). Each of these films left me reeling, but at the same time hungry for more. Their power rests not only in their beautiful aesthetics and stunning performances, but also in the directors' ability to tell simple, but enormously moving stories with protagonists that make you care about what will happen to them next.
Now I have another film to add to this list: Auf der Strecke, a short film by Swiss director Reto Caffi, which tells a heartbreaking story of love and the terrible impact of a bad choice.
I saw this film on Arte a couple weeks ago, and simply could not stop thinking about it. I won't go into too much detail here, because I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it. Everybody deserves to have the same "Oh fuck .... Nooooooo!!!" moment that I had. Suffice it to say that the protagonist is a good guy who makes a bad choice because of love. The repercussions bring the woman he loves closer, but now make that love impossible.
Confused? Sorry, but you do need to see it for yourself.
I'm very excited to see that the film has been nominated for an Oscar in the category of short films.* So keep your fingers crossed for Mr. Caffi; this one really deserves a win.
*Honestly, this is always the BEST category in the Oscars, anyway.
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Intrigued... I looked for this film. Impatient... I bought it on iTunes. Glad I did. It's not just that he makes this poor choice, but he knows it is.
ReplyDeleteWow! Okay, you're officially the only person I know who has seen the film. So that makes you pretty special in my eyes ;-) I'm really flattered that my post inspired you to see the film and thrilled to know that it's available on iTunes, so now I will buy it myself.
ReplyDeleteYes, he knows he's making a poor choice, but he has no idea how poor it really is until it's too late. What I also love about this film is that it allows me to imagine his life afterwards; a terrible choice has changed it irrevocably and he will have to live with that forever. In my imaginings of his future life, I wonder if he ever confesses . . . I end up with no, but I think he has to go away from her somehow.
In any case, thanks Janice!
Honestly... the scene where she is at the window smoking... he has two thoughts running through his head. They both start with the letter 'I', and either sentence could crush them both.
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