A Pigeon Sat On A Branch Reflecting On Existence

Fysh

I'm surprised to see no thread for this, I would've thought some of the regulars here would be all over this. Here's the UK trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DpdDYwBTEg

I saw this tonight, and it was very good if quite surreal. Some great black humour in there as evidenced in the trailer, although I'll admit that there are several "wtf?" moments that I'm pretty sure went right over my head - the most notable being the sequence near the end where

a group of black slaves are apparently marched into a giant iron cylinder under which an enormous bonfire is lit, presumably cooking them alive

. It reminds me somewhat of Ben Wheatley's description of A Field In England as featuring "an assault on the viewer".

Surprisingly, the best description of it I've seen comes from someone writing for Empire: "If Chris Morris had grown up in Sweden watching Jacques Tati and Ingmar Bergman films, he might be making films like this."

johnny_ultimate

There was some scattered discussion about it in the what have you watched recently thread!

As I said there...

Listening to a piece of music in Roy Andersson's absolutely sublime latest feature, a main character observes "it's so beautiful, but so horribly sad too". That almost describes the film itself, but minus the bit about it also being hilarious.

If you've seen an Andersson film before (well, one from his now completed 'human trilogy'), you know what you're in for: deadpan humour, long static shots, surreal imagery, vignettes etc etc. Yet it's a style so singular and confident it still manages to surprise, especially given the extended gap since You, The Living.

This is total cinema, the work of a director in complete control of his vision. It's not just the cinematography or pacing, but it's right down to the make-up - all the characters painted grey and zombie-like, balancing precariously on the periphery between life and death. Which suits many of the film's thematic preoccupations, these people trying to make sense of a dark, confusing world - although the film encompasses so many reflections on the human condition, an essay would be required to explore them in depth.

The film is hilarious, no question, with some of the finest deadpan humour to ever grace a cinema screen - Andersson is a master of absurdist understatement. He is also a master of the setpiece - several sequences in this are destined to be among the decade's finest (one involving an impromptu singalong in a bar, while another sees past and present collide with demented force). But there's an existential sting in the tale - while Andersson invites the audience to laugh at the often bleak situations that unfold, the tone carefully begins to fluctuate and shift as the film progresses. Towards the end, characters are forced to confront some disturbing realities and fantasies - one in particular right out of a nightmare. It's a cynical film at times, although one that eventually does end on a humorously ambivalent note that betrays a reluctant acceptance of all this horrible beauty. It's Wednesday again, after all.

Essential, brilliant filmmaking.

johnny_ultimate

An aside; I think I need to try and source an Uncle One Tooth mask before Halloween.

e_e

Saw it at JDIFF but was so delighted that my local multiplex played it that I had to go back. Really glad I did because it was even more incredible with some of my initial doubts subsiding.

I love the sense of discovery you get watching Andersson's films. One little detail that I failed to pick up on at JDIFF that really amused me this time was in the scene where the two bumbling salesman demand money from the shop owner. The guy covers himself with the blanket screaming "We have no money! We have no money!" and on the left side of the frame you see the child sitting on the floor with a pen and paper. Looking way more mature and organized than the father throwing a tantrum in the other room.

Also that trio of final scenes (the brass drum, the corridor, the bus stop) were incredibly profound to me. The themes of the film really crystallize at that point, becoming darker and more haunting. A really exceptional coda to the trilogy.

Decuc500

I saw this at JDIFF as well and I'm just gonna say that it wasn't for me.

It started off promising and the tap dancing scene was very funny but I quickly grew bored with the bland sameness of the whole thing. I left the cinema feeling annoyed so I guess at least it stirred some kind of emotion in me but boredom and frustration aren't the reasons I watch films. Disappointing.

Fysh

Decuc500 wrote: »

I saw this at JDIFF as well and I'm just gonna say that it wasn't for me.

It started off promising and the tap dancing scene was very funny but I quickly grew bored with the bland sameness of the whole thing. I left the cinema feeling annoyed so I guess at least it stirred some kind of emotion in me but boredom and frustration aren't the reasons I watch films. Disappointing.

I wouldn't say I was frustrated by it, but I definitely felt I was missing something. It didn't help that I watched it in a very stuffy, warm cinema and honestly wasn't sure if I'd dozed off and missed something by the end.

I thought the bit at the start saying it was the end of a trilogy was just a joke; now I'm wondering if seeing the other two films first would have given me a better footing for A Pigeon...

Out of curiosity, Decuc500, have you seen the other two films in the trilogy?

Decuc500

Fysh wrote: »

Out of curiosity, Decuc500, have you seen the other two films in the trilogy?

No, I haven't seen any of Roy Andersson's previous films so I didn't know what to expect going in.

the_monkey

looks like an arty farty pile of shyte

johnny_ultimate

the_monkey wrote: »

looks like an arty farty pile of shyte

If you have nothing productive to add to a discussion, then please refrain from posting. This sort of utterly pointless comment does nothing but detract from the conversation people who have actually watched the film are having.

the_monkey

Apologies, I meant it in light humour, it could actually be good , ill post back when I see it ..

e_e

I'd definitely suggest checking out the earlier films in the trilogy first as they'll get you more accustomed to his style and the world he's building (both literally and figuratively).

Chain Smoker

My biggest problem with the movie was overcoming the wave of embarrassment that flashed over me as I realised how awkward the name was to say aloud while I was purchasing the ticket.

A Neurotic

Just saw this. I just... I... what?

Absolutely no idea how or why this has gotten so much critical praise. A couple of 'hah' moments of humour in it for me. Otherwise it seems to have gone entirely over my head. With every cut to black near the end I was silently praying it would be over.

Just not my sort of film I suppose. Any else completely bemused by it?

e_e

There were a good few walkouts at the JDIFF screening so you're not the only one. The weirdness is kind of par for the course though but it's all done to a point.