Absolute fucking cinema. This is one of the most immersive and emotionally draining films you will ever see. I might actually need a break from watching films after this because it affected me in ways I didn’t expect at all. I love almost everything about this film, except the pacing. Yeah, the middle bit is pretty slow, but tbf it is a Béla Tarr film so it's pretty much bound to be slow. But once it gets past that, the film just becomes sooo much more riveting and the time just flies by.
The long takes are brilliant, there are only around 39 shots in the entire film, which is WILD. That’s like 4 minutes per shot on average, which is really impressive. The tracking shots are also amazing, they’re very controlled and precise, especially the 10 minute opening scene, which is easily one of the best openings I’ve ever seen.
Everything feels very real too, the world, the people, the atmosphere, it all feels grounded even when things become more strange. There’s this constant sense of unease, like something is slowly falling apart and no one can really stop it. The main character just drifts through all of it, trying to make sense of the chaos around him, and you can feel how powerless he is as everything escalates. The whale, a.k.a. the circus attraction, clearly represents something much larger, a powerful presence that affects everyone without them fully understanding it, and the Prince adds to that idea of manipulation and mass influence. It really gets into themes of order vs chaos, and how fragile society actually is.
The hospital sequence is devastating, and that final shot is one of my favorites ever. It’s bleak, it’s heavy, and it leaves you completely drained by the end, but in a way that feels worth it. An absolute masterpiece. If you wanna get into slow cinema, and just get into Béla Tarr’s films in general, go watch this film right now. You will fall in love.
Absolute fucking cinema. This is one of the most immersive and emotionally draining films you will ever see. I might actually need a break from watching films after this because it affected me in ways I didn’t expect at all. I love almost everything about this film, except the pacing. Yeah, the middle bit is pretty slow, but tbf it is a Béla Tarr film so it's pretty much bound to be slow. But once it gets past that, the film just becomes sooo much more riveting and the time just flies by.
The long takes are brilliant, there are only around 39 shots in the entire film, which is WILD. That’s like 4 minutes per shot on average, which is really impressive. The tracking shots are also amazing, they’re very controlled and precise, especially the 10 minute opening scene, which is easily one of the best openings I’ve ever seen.
Everything feels very real too, the world, the people, the atmosphere, it all feels grounded even when things become more strange. There’s this constant sense of unease, like something is slowly falling apart and no one can really stop it. The main character just drifts through all of it, trying to make sense of the chaos around him, and you can feel how powerless he is as everything escalates. The whale, a.k.a. the circus attraction, clearly represents something much larger, a powerful presence that affects everyone without them fully understanding it, and the Prince adds to that idea of manipulation and mass influence. It really gets into themes of order vs chaos, and how fragile society actually is.
The hospital sequence is devastating, and that final shot is one of my favorites ever. It’s bleak, it’s heavy, and it leaves you completely drained by the end, but in a way that feels worth it. An absolute masterpiece. If you wanna get into slow cinema, and just get into Béla Tarr’s films in general, go watch this film right now. You will fall in love.
