The Quinte Film Alternative screenings at the Empire theatre in Belleville are lifesavers, saving us from the dumb, dumber and dumbest multi-plex dreck that we have to endure. Okay, a little harsh, but close to the truth. Just take a look at what's on offer right now.
Recently we saw Ida, a Polish film set in the bleak, communist 1960's. A young nun, named Anna is about to take her vows but the superior wants her to find her family. She is told that while she is an orphan there is an aunt. It turns out that her mother's sister is a fallen-from-politburo-grace judge who uses booze and one-night-stands to deal with her pain. After a rocky start they set out to discover dark aspects of Anna's past. It turns out that her real name is Ida, and she is Jewish by birth.
I'll be fair and not reveal how the story unfolds, other than to say that along with searching for her heritage Anna/Ida explores the previously forbidden world of sensual pleasures before deciding whether to return to the convent.
We liked this film. The cinematography is superb, the mood captures the dreary days of Eastern European communist countries, and we are given a spare but worthwhile glimpse of what it means to find one's identity, in all its expressions.
I know that a couple of readers have seen this film, because they were there the night we were. Have others seen it as well?
Art, architecture, a novel and a movie. Lion Lamb arts week ends!
No comments:
Post a Comment