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[CINEMA] "The Night I Swam" during Sofia Film Fest 2018

2/4/2018

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The Night I Swam (La Nuit où j'ai nagé) - 2017
  • Directors - Kohei Igarashi, Damien Manivel
  • Written by - Kohei Igarashi, Damien Manivel
  • Staring - Chisato Kogawa, Keiki Kogawa, Takara Kogawa, Takashi Kogawa
  • Genre - drama
  • IMDB rating - 6,3

Snow, snow, and even more snow. Everything around is coated with a thick white cloak. A father leaves every night for his work down at the fish market. A child - almost awake and almost asleep - swims through the snowy streets. He has a destination and a mission.
"The Night I Swam" is not a film for everybody. The French touch can be felt right at the start of the movie - filled with fine details, specific camera work and still life type of scenes. The little boy is in the center of the plot with his walk around the snow-filled Japanese city. A frame is present at the beginning and at the end of the movie - a staircase, snowfall can be seen through the window, and a hurried cigarette. We seem to have an ending to the story but actually, the cycle continues beyond. The wheel continues to spin no matter what the little boy does, however the story changes - the father always goes to work before the boy awakes. Always missing each other, always leaving "love letters" for each other - one with drawings, the other with a silent gesture. Despite the deeply heartbreaking cycle, "The Night I Swam" makes us relax and follow the flow without worrying where we might end. Takes us on a journey with our little main character and experience the world through his eyes. It is a bonus that we do not need any language skills neither in Japanese, nor French. Only a heart is needed.
 
An absolute journey-movie, made by all laws of art cinema. Silent, natural, realistic, snow-white dream of a child. The film follows closely the travels of one kid through the endless snow in the northern town of Aomori. We don't go down the journey as we might expect, as other movies do. We go with no words. We need only steps. 

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This is a movie that we could spend hours analyzing and trying to figure out. Everyone can find something unique and many things to think about. At the same time, the movie can be enjoyed by absolutely shutting down the logic. By just going with the flow. For me, the first method is easier so it came naturally to ask myself many questions as for why the only musical piece that we can sporadically hear is "Spring" by Vivaldi and why only in specific scenes? Why was that camera static during the whole movie but moved just 2 or 3 times, was it at random? Was it by design that the little boy was constantly surrounded by water in different forms and shapes - his fish figurines and pictures, the drawing, the snow, the river, the fish market? Truth is - it doesn't matter what was on purpose.

It is very hard for adults to peek into the little man's mind and understand what is driving him to go to such extents. The little runaway carries an important drawing that he has to show to his father. The journey is dangerous and even risky at times but he never gives up. Many obstacles await him before he gets to his destination - the fish market. He is taken by surprise there - the market is already closed and everything around is completely empty. No people. Right at that moment, the fatigue takes its toll on the kid. He has to finally sleep. The Odyssey of the little man is shown through three silent parts - "The Drawing", "The Fish Market" and "The Long Sleep". 

For Cineuropa Damien Manivel says: "Before shooting the film, we talked a lot about what kind of feelings we would like to evoke. And then we started figuring out how to achieve that effect. But sometimes, or even most of the time, it was Takara himself who would come up with some new ideas, completely changing what we previously had in mind. And we loved it!"


If you are looking for action and dynamics, better look elsewhere! If you decide tho that you need a bit of silence and calmness, you can safely trust "The Night I Swam"!
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"The Night I Swam" during Sofia Film Fest

Статията на български език - тук. 
Author: Lilia Bozhinova and Maria Simeonova
Translated by
Lilia Bozhinova

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[CINEMA] Indonesian culinary feast with "Tabula Rasa"

28/3/2018

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Tabula Rasa - 2014
  • Director - Adriyanto Dewo
  • Writer - Tumpal Tampubolon
  • Stars - Jimmy Kobogau, Dewi Irawan, Yayu A.W. Unru
  • Genre - drama
  • IMDB rating - 7.8 

Young Hans has lost everything. His career, the connection with his homeland, even his will to live. Mak runs a humble restaurant and on one of her usual trips to the market, she stumbles upon Hans. She takes Hans under her wing just when he needs it the most... and when she needs him the most too. One warm meal could mean so much more than just food. Cooking not just out of necessity but cooking meals to feed the soul.
Tabula rasa in Latin literally means a blank or a clean board, referring to the wax boards the Romans used in order to write. No matter what is written tho, if the wax is heated and smoothed out, it becomes a tabula rasa - a clean (or better yet, erased) space which we can use anew. To start again is always easier in theory than in practice especially when we remember what the wax said before we erased it. 

It may sound as a bit of a stretch but "Tabula Rasa" illustrates brilliantly this precise moment of change that we've all experienced more than once in our lifetimes even. Not just that but the message is depicted in the image of something we oftentimes deem as more mundane than we can imagine - through food. The food that we all eat (hopefully) several times a day. The food that is a vital part of our well being and life to such extent that we forget about its spiritual worth. The movie delicately takes us on a journey not only through the wonderful cuisine of Indonesia but through the culture and soul of the local people. Meals are not just for blind consumption, to survive. They can also have history behind them - who we are, where we come from, where are we going. What do we feel even. The scenes I absolutely adored the most were set in the kitchen. Mak wasn't just cooking more so she was creating, molding with her two hands and with lots of love culinary masterpieces. Her character has a line about how the food, all of the food should pass through the hands of the cook. We see the food being created with such love and devotion - almost like a sacred ritual in the name of the holiest thing actually - food. And with food - life.
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Don't worry if you are not familiar with Indonesian cinema or the country as a whole. "Tabula Rasa" will guide you in the culture with a gentle smile and a warm Indonesian delicacy - much like the ones that are so crucial to the local culture. Dare I say this is one of those movies that you need not prepare to watch because it will prepare you. It will inspire, move and make you dream. And most certainly - it will make you crave Indonesian cuisine.

During the movie, the obvious tabula rasa were the lives of every character. Either by choice, tragedy or ill-doing, all were forced in a way to start anew. On a clean slate. With the end credits of the movie tho, still in the darkness of the theater, in a way, my own life felt like that smoothened and clean wax board. I felt ready for something new and exciting. I even wanted to cook but like Mak - with my soul.


"Tabula Rasa" as part of Sofia Fil Fest
Facebook page of the Embassy of Indonesia in Bulgaria
Author: Lilia Bozhinova
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