I remember watching this for the first time and thinking it was one of Dora’s weakest films, however on rewatch it’s now in my top 3 of his work!
As usual, the cinematography and musical score are top notch. Dora always combines beautiful landscapes and camera work with violent images, creating an interesting contrast and leads into many ways we could interpret his work. This film is definitely one of his more straightforward pieces however, making it very accessible for people trying to get into Dora as a filmmaker, as it lacks the more surrealist dialog or complexity to films such as Melancholie Der Engel.
That being said, there is still a lot to be had with this film. As I mentioned in my first review, I find the entire idea of the ocean to be a representation of Rafael’s mind and inner emptiness. As the ocean becomes wider, so does his need of increasing depravity until ultimately it closes in and he commits the ultimate act of sadism that was foreshadowed earlier when the ocean was at its widest.
Along with this, I believe the interpretation of this film exploring the power dynamics of an abusive relationship to make a lot of sense. It is clear that Isabell is also a victim to Rafael rather than an accomplice, making this film in general one of Dora’s most disturbing works despite its lack of violence when compared to his other works.
Overall, I find this to be a very interesting film that left me thinking for a while. I enjoy its more straightforward approach to its storytelling, and for me this is Dora at his best visually. I can see my score increasing on rewatch, though as mentioned before I find this piece to be one of his most disturbing works so i’m not sure when that would be haha
I remember watching this for the first time and thinking it was one of Dora’s weakest films, however on rewatch it’s now in my top 3 of his work!
As usual, the cinematography and musical score are top notch. Dora always combines beautiful landscapes and camera work with violent images, creating an interesting contrast and leads into many ways we could interpret his work. This film is definitely one of his more straightforward pieces however, making it very accessible for people trying to get into Dora as a filmmaker, as it lacks the more surrealist dialog or complexity to films such as Melancholie Der Engel.
That being said, there is still a lot to be had with this film. As I mentioned in my first review, I find the entire idea of the ocean to be a representation of Rafael’s mind and inner emptiness. As the ocean becomes wider, so does his need of increasing depravity until ultimately it closes in and he commits the ultimate act of sadism that was foreshadowed earlier when the ocean was at its widest.
Along with this, I believe the interpretation of this film exploring the power dynamics of an abusive relationship to make a lot of sense. It is clear that Isabell is also a victim to Rafael rather than an accomplice, making this film in general one of Dora’s most disturbing works despite its lack of violence when compared to his other works.
Overall, I find this to be a very interesting film that left me thinking for a while. I enjoy its more straightforward approach to its storytelling, and for me this is Dora at his best visually. I can see my score increasing on rewatch, though as mentioned before I find this piece to be one of his most disturbing works so i’m not sure when that would be haha
