Saturday, February 13, 2010

Day 3 - If I Want To Whistle, I Whistle

 
 We'll need to call the glazer again.


Things starting to pick up on the competition front. Just saw a Romanian film. Romanian films have started to attract more attention in the last few years, ever since that abortion drama that everyone says is amazing which I am too scared to see - the word "harrowing" frequently appears in connection with it. One of those words that have been invented by and for film critics, but how come the verb is never used? "This is going to harrow me." Or, "I felt very harrowed.")

But those Romanians, they are very good at harrowing people. This one, entitled If I Want To Whistle, I Whistle, was also very harrowing. It harrowed the willies out of me. It was a bit like one of my favourite movies, Cool Hand Luke, but set in an unbelievably dilapidated youth detention centre - with some very brittle windows - and with fewer funny bits. A young man is about to be released, but his mum wants to leave the country and take his little brother with him. He hates his mum, because he thinks she abandoned him. He allows himself to be bullied, fearing that his release will be deferred, but various provocations ensue, and a horrible sequence of unplanned and harrowing events unfold, fuelled by all of life's frustrations. It's really harrowing. And a heavy pressure of violence hangs over everything, but is rarely released, which only increases the overall harrowment factor.

Now for the new Scorcese, Shutter Island. Looks like I'm in for another right old harrowing.

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