“if you don’t want anything you won’t have anything, and if you don’t have anything, you’re as good as dead.”
‘wanda’ is definitely a hard watch, but is honestly totally worth it. there’s no true narrative, or atleast a traditional one - it follows an apathetic woman named wanda who escapes her toxic, chaotic home filled with despair and crying babies to wander aimlessly through urban decay and coal-mines. this is definitely highly character driven, delving into this passive woman’s life as she just walks around busy streets, just feeling so lost and alone. it’s easily one of the most depressing things i’ve ever seen. it’s rare to find a film that completely devoid from a speck of joy, happiness. wanda is one that’s just completely fueled with dread from start to end. not because of any big events that happen - there’s no death that makes you bawl, or any true loss of any kind (while both of those things do take place, they’re not really emphasised). instead the bleakness is created through this character, who’s seemingly just completely given up on herself. she divorces her husband, and gives up her kids without any argument - stating that they’d be better with them. that triggers a downward spiral for the life of this woman, she sleeps on her sisters couch, no money and unemployed - simply relying on random men to sleep with. she has no friends, no family that she keeps in contact - she follows the only man who acknowledges her, which is upsetting considering he’s constantly berating her and insults her appearance constantly - but she sticks with him anyway as she has no where else in the world she can go. while being emotionally and physically abusive, along with him being noticeably dangerous, wanda likes him as he gives her direction in a world where she doesn’t know where to go, or how to live. the man she’s with is a petty criminal, robbing and stealing banks - which wanda notices is wrong, but doesn’t say anything as he’s all she really has. due to her complete submission to the man - she agrees to rob a bank with him, which unfortunately backfires as the police arrive - and her accomplice is abruptly shot dead. her companion who she spent nearly the whole movie with just dies instantly after meeting her - which just makes everything even more depressing as wanda, again, loses all purpose in her seemingly meaningless life. after this life-changing event, her life pretty much just goes back to how it originally was. she escapes a sexual assault with a random man - and she’s back to aimlessly wandering streets - unemployed, no money and cold. the movie is pretty much a circle, there’s no big revelation, no plot twist and is void of any happy ending for the miserable protagonist. in fact, her life just gets worse throughout the course of the movie, as her potential escape from this passive lifestyle was neatly broken due to this criminal giving her some direction in a world where she doesn’t know how to navigate. the reason why this movie was so effective to me, is honestly how much i relate to the titular character. she simply lives invisibly, no ambition or goals, and lives an apathetic lifestyle where she doesn’t seem to care about anything anymore. she has no identity left - and simply passes from person to person for survival. i really don’t know what to rate this on a scale - as it’s bleak, slow-paced, depressing - and it evokes just a visceral emotion as i respond to complete hopelessness that the protagonist is clearly facing. the reason it manages to have such a desolate, bleak atmosphere is it lacks any polish or glamour seen in typical runaway movies. there’s no unique fashion, or charismatic characters - the story simply focusing on a dazed, emotionless woman who walks through an industrial landscape. it’s shot like a documentary. it’s uses realism to elevate the sadness. there’s minimal music, natural lighting and uses a grimy setting to show a realistic world. it has an original female perspective - subverting typical women tropes of hollywood. she doesn’t seek redemption or empowerment - she just simply drifts through life meaninglessly. it’s also nice how this movie doesn’t seem to judge or moralise her actions - simply showcasing a neutral view on this morally ambiguous woman who while she works with a dangerous man, her life has no direction or meaning to herself. the performance is realistic, dialogue seems natural and minimalistic. this movie uses minimalism to create a bleak narrative - which works perfectly well. ‘wanda’ 1970 is a one in a million - i’ve never seen something quite like it, and i probably won’t ever see something quite like this again.
“if you don’t want anything you won’t have anything, and if you don’t have anything, you’re as good as dead.”
‘wanda’ is definitely a hard watch, but is honestly totally worth it. there’s no true narrative, or atleast a traditional one - it follows an apathetic woman named wanda who escapes her toxic, chaotic home filled with despair and crying babies to wander aimlessly through urban decay and coal-mines. this is definitely highly character driven, delving into this passive woman’s life as she just walks around busy streets, just feeling so lost and alone. it’s easily one of the most depressing things i’ve ever seen. it’s rare to find a film that completely devoid from a speck of joy, happiness. wanda is one that’s just completely fueled with dread from start to end. not because of any big events that happen - there’s no death that makes you bawl, or any true loss of any kind (while both of those things do take place, they’re not really emphasised). instead the bleakness is created through this character, who’s seemingly just completely given up on herself. she divorces her husband, and gives up her kids without any argument - stating that they’d be better with them. that triggers a downward spiral for the life of this woman, she sleeps on her sisters couch, no money and unemployed - simply relying on random men to sleep with. she has no friends, no family that she keeps in contact - she follows the only man who acknowledges her, which is upsetting considering he’s constantly berating her and insults her appearance constantly - but she sticks with him anyway as she has no where else in the world she can go. while being emotionally and physically abusive, along with him being noticeably dangerous, wanda likes him as he gives her direction in a world where she doesn’t know where to go, or how to live. the man she’s with is a petty criminal, robbing and stealing banks - which wanda notices is wrong, but doesn’t say anything as he’s all she really has. due to her complete submission to the man - she agrees to rob a bank with him, which unfortunately backfires as the police arrive - and her accomplice is abruptly shot dead. her companion who she spent nearly the whole movie with just dies instantly after meeting her - which just makes everything even more depressing as wanda, again, loses all purpose in her seemingly meaningless life. after this life-changing event, her life pretty much just goes back to how it originally was. she escapes a sexual assault with a random man - and she’s back to aimlessly wandering streets - unemployed, no money and cold. the movie is pretty much a circle, there’s no big revelation, no plot twist and is void of any happy ending for the miserable protagonist. in fact, her life just gets worse throughout the course of the movie, as her potential escape from this passive lifestyle was neatly broken due to this criminal giving her some direction in a world where she doesn’t know how to navigate. the reason why this movie was so effective to me, is honestly how much i relate to the titular character. she simply lives invisibly, no ambition or goals, and lives an apathetic lifestyle where she doesn’t seem to care about anything anymore. she has no identity left - and simply passes from person to person for survival. i really don’t know what to rate this on a scale - as it’s bleak, slow-paced, depressing - and it evokes just a visceral emotion as i respond to complete hopelessness that the protagonist is clearly facing. the reason it manages to have such a desolate, bleak atmosphere is it lacks any polish or glamour seen in typical runaway movies. there’s no unique fashion, or charismatic characters - the story simply focusing on a dazed, emotionless woman who walks through an industrial landscape. it’s shot like a documentary. it’s uses realism to elevate the sadness. there’s minimal music, natural lighting and uses a grimy setting to show a realistic world. it has an original female perspective - subverting typical women tropes of hollywood. she doesn’t seek redemption or empowerment - she just simply drifts through life meaninglessly. it’s also nice how this movie doesn’t seem to judge or moralise her actions - simply showcasing a neutral view on this morally ambiguous woman who while she works with a dangerous man, her life has no direction or meaning to herself. the performance is realistic, dialogue seems natural and minimalistic. this movie uses minimalism to create a bleak narrative - which works perfectly well. ‘wanda’ 1970 is a one in a million - i’ve never seen something quite like it, and i probably won’t ever see something quite like this again.
