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A look back at 2023 – in movies

I’m not really writing this for anyone other than myself. This year, I spent more time than ever before at the movies, finding comfort in lonely moments, laughing alone, laughing with friends, thinking of people who aren’t in my life anymore. It’s been a long year, a hard one but one that taught me a lot, as cliché as it sounds. Enough rambling though, time to satisfy my craving and list-ify my experience in film this year.

January

I only watched two films during all of January, one of which was M3GAN (which I found had a lot of wasted potential), with the other being Luca Guadagnino’s Bones and All. A wonderfully weird and dark movie whose stiffness worked for me about 75% of the time. The reason I’m mentioning it here though isn’t really the movie itself, but the soundtrack. I still find myself coming back to it a lot more than I thought I would; a cloud of sounds reminiscent of the sounds of The Last of Us, down to earth, somber, yet gentle, yet cold and aggressive when needed. This soundtrack should have received far more praise than it did, unfortunately being overlooked because of just how well it fit within the landscape of the film.

February

My experience with Ulrich Seidl’s 205 minute long Wicked Games – Rimini /Sparta is one that I will certainly remember, with it being the only feature film I saw at IFFR, and Rotterdam’s international film festival being my first film festival ever. It is a very observant and patient piece, and the two main characters feel real, albeit distant. Having grown up close to Northern Italy, I can say with absolute certainty that Richie is real, and he is out there right now, performing for ancient Austrian ladies, in some worn-down hotel in Grado or Lignano or wherever.

A less light-hearted reason to remember this film was the controversy following its release, surrounding the treatment of children on set and their framing in the movie itself (as it deals with pedophilia in a way that – in my opinion – isn’t careful and critical enough).

March

Between a rewatch of Everything Everywhere All At Once and a first-time viewing of Tommy Wiseau’s The Room, things started to pick up in March, though looking back now, the movies i saw are not as memorable as I then thought they would be.

I would like to mention Feminism WTF by Katharina Mückstein as a wonderfully powerful, yet approachable and fun look into the state of feminism today. It does a great job giving an introduction to modern feminism without dumbing things down beyond recognition, while still opening up the conversation.

April

I started this month with what would turn out to be one of my favourite films of the entire year (though it was released in 2022), Charlotte Wells’ Aftersun. I don’t even want to say too much about it. This film is entrancing, and it is made for small movie theaters with comfortable seats and 3-7 others in the room with you.

May

May was a very strong month for me, and unlike some of the prior months, I’m having trouble picking out the movies I want to bring up here. One film that came and went quickly and quietly was Maigret by Patrice Leconte, which I thought was quite charming, although most other reviews don’t seem to share my opinion. Smaken är som baken.

I also went and saw Beau is Afraid, which left me with lingering anxiety for a few days after, but this year’s most horrifying cinema experience came a few days after, with a late-night showing of Phil Tippett’s Mad God (2021). At only 81 minutes, it sure felt like 180. Don’t take this as criticism, this movie is abhorrent, especially when you’re on the brink of falling asleep the entire time, but I can’t recommend it enough. We need more movies as vile and unapologetically revolting as this one.

The third horror film I want to mention is Darren Aronofsky’s mother! (2017). I had no idea what I was getting into with this, but what a special film. Having watched Requiem for a Dream not long before, this film really showed Aronofsky’s development both as a filmmaker in general and, more importantly, in how he views, writes and portrays women. A powerful piece, tragic and unexpected.

On a lighter note, I watched and completely fell in love with Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004). There is something about this movie that I can’t quite explain, so maybe it’s best I don’t. This may be Anderson’s most overlooked film, and what a shame that is. It is funny, it is tragic, it has this instantly engaging, wondrous look to it; it is so absurd, and it is so real. This movie is wonderful, please give it some of your time.

June

I want to quickly mention 20,000 Species of Bees here, not because it was my favourite film of the year; i didn’t even personally connect with it that much. I just wanted to say, if you have someone in your life who is trans, maybe even your child, if you want to try to understand, to open that door, then watch this movie. It is not perfect, but it will help you understand.

July

On a rewatch, Dungeons and Dragons: Honour among Thieves still holds up. It does exactly what you want it to, and it does it perfectly alright. It excellently encapsulates the madness of Dungeons and Dragons, and things go wrong just right. This is on my list because I personally got into TTRPGs more than ever this year, getting to host and DM a handful of sessions, and this film was not the disappointment I’d expected.

Another favourite this year was Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. I’m so excited to see where this story goes. After coming down with superhero-fatigue like everyone else on the planet, this series is the only Marvel-related thing I actively keep up with and enjoy. More like this, please.

I’m also going to mention Barbie because I feel like I have to… personally, I was pleasantly surprised! It was the culmination of the supposed Queermisandrist Agenda (they’re trans-ing our kids!!) for a few very loud assholes on one end of the spectrum and simply Not Enough for some on the other end, but it never set out to solve worldwide misogyny in the first place and that’s perfectly fine. I thought this was a super solid film and thinking about all the breakups caused by this makes me happy.

August

In August, I rewatched The Ritual (2017) while on a remote farm in rural Sweden surrounded by endless acres of woods. Talk about immersion. While there, I also watched Promare, an unexpectedly beautiful and just really, really fun film from Studio Trigger. Seriously, this was gorgeous.

September

On September 3rd, I finally got to watch Talk to Me after missing its initial cinematic release. I could talk about this film for hours. I’ll say this much: You know a film is great if the opening scene is so captivating that you can’t help continuing watching it on your phone on some dodgy website through some French guy’s phone recording of the screen of a small, almost empty theatre. I think about this movie very very often.

Another film I think about a lot is We’re All Going to the World’s Fair. If your childhood and/or youth was in some way influenced by the Internet, you will find things in this movie reflecting that experience that no other film has yet managed to capture. At least not on a level this visceral, while still remaining eerily relatable and honest.

I also watched Projekt Ballhausplatz. Fuck you, Sebastian Kurz.

October

Between Inception, 2001: A Space Odyssey and GoodFellas, I did a lot of catching up on so-called classics and a lot of thinking about women in film. I did not, unfortunately, get to watch as many horror movies as I wanted.

November

This month brought two gems to my attention, Jessica Hausner’s Club Zero and Justine Triet’s Anatomy of a Fall. Both are captivating and unique in their own right, and both had me thinking about them the days and weeks after. There was one scene in Anatomy of a Fall that had me choking back tears (a discussion/fight; I don’t want to spoil anything), and now even thinking about it, I feel my heart sinking a bit. This movie may be 152 minutes long, but it certainly doesn’t feel like it.

December

My revue of this year started early, with rewatches of Aftersun and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, but December had two more gems for me. Number one was Leni Lauritsch’ Rubikon, a 2022 release that was largely overlooked. An immense shame. This movie is made for the big screen, with visuals rivaling massive Hollywood productions and an immersive, larger-than-life soundscape.

The days and weeks before Christmas are never not stressful for me, but I am so glad I made the time to watch Fremont the day it premiered in Austrian cinemas. This movie is wonderful, it is immaculately funny, perfectly restrained, tragic, yet hopeful. It feels like a chef’s perfected dish, with every ingredient measured to a tee. It ends right when it needs to but leaves you yearning for more.

And that’s it. There were so many films I missed, unfortunately, but my cine-addiction shows no signs of stopping, so maybe I’ll catch up next year. I wrote this entire thing instead of doing uni work and I don’t think anyone other than myself is ever going to read it, so I guess we can conclude that this whole film-thing really does matter to me. If you did read through (thank you!), what were your favourite films this year? Any recommendations?

May your 2024 be filled with good movies :)

[seagull-df-300]

WALD von Elisabeth Scharang (spoiler free review)

Es ist ein kalter Winterabend, an dem ich mich nochmal aus der Wärme meines Zimmers in die Straßen Wiens schleiche. Zu einem Film, den ich schon gesehen haben wollte, aber dann kamen mir irgendwie andere Produktionen immer spannender vor, und so wurde es erst jetzt was, am 11.12., als die dazugehörigen Poster schon fast überall wieder abgehängt sind, mit dem Wald.

Marian ist renommierte Journalistin – und neuerdings traumatisiert, nachdem sie den Terroranschlag in Wien im November 2020 hautnah miterleben musste; soviel verrät auch der Klappentext. Der Film selbst aber beginnt nicht vorne, sondern irgendwo in der Mitte eines Zustandes, den die darauffolgenden 95 Minuten vorsichtig, aber doch bestimmt erfühlen werden. Zwischen bestechenden Naturaufnahmen tritt schließlich eine Figur hervor, die scheints simultan mit dem Publikum ihre eigenen Kanten entdeckt und erfühlt, wo’s wehtut – und wieso. Dies passiert über viele kleine und größere Zusammenstöße mit den Menschen aus dem Dorf, in das es Marian nach dem Anschlag zurückreißt; Charaktere, die mit viel Herz gespielt werden und eine Tiefe anmuten lassen, die der Dialog dem Publikum leider nicht zu 100% zutraut. Dennoch spürt man ein komplexes Netz, dass die Bewohner*innen dieses Dorfes untereinander, und genauso mit Marian, verbindet. Keineswegs harmonisch, so hat unsere Protagonistin diesen Ort eigentlich vor langer Zeit hinter sich gelassen – physisch zumindest, und ihre Rückkehr auf kurze oder lange Sicht muss sie sich erst erkämpfen. Ob das aber wirklich ihr Ziel ist, oder ob sie sich doch auch dem Grund für ihren Fluchtreflex aus der Großstadt selbst annähern kann, das muss man sich erzählen lassen.

Wald ist ein Film mit Ecken und Kanten, der nicht immer ganz fertiggeschliffen wirkt, jedoch mit einem starken Kern überzeugt. Speziell im Schnitt fehlt vielerorts der Rhythmus, was die Kohärenz der ansonsten konsequent gestrickten Atmosphäre leider ab und an bricht. Dazu kommen die Dialoge, die der Zuseher*in weniger zutrauen und mehr vor die Nase halten als nötig. Oft hätte die Bildsprache allein genug gesagt, aber im Werden dieses Films verstellten sich die Weichen irgendwo auf show and tell anstatt show don’t tell. Schade! Elisabeth Scharang ist enorm überlegt und eloquent, wenn man sich Gespräche mit ihr ansieht und anhört; hoffentlich wird davon bei ihrer nächsten Produktion wieder mehr auf das Blatt fließen. Aber auch wenn das Skript nicht der Hauptverantwortliche dafür ist, wohnt all diesen Charakteren, wie auch den Orten, an denen sie angetroffen werden, greifbar viel Herz und Tiefe inne. Man merkt, dass hier vom Casting an gehobelt und gesägt wurde, und herausgekommen sind Figuren, deren Puls man spüren kann. Trotz der Leere und Kälte des Waldes, der Marian empfängt und die gesamte Gegend umhüllt, stehen die Figuren aber nicht einfach bloß vor einem leblosen, zweidimensionalen Backdrop. Ganz im Gegenteil, ihre Einbettung in das „wo“ ist dick verstrickt mit ihren Taten und Ansichten; letztendlich also damit, wer sie sind, und somit versteht man am Ende vielleicht auch, wieso es Marian in diesen Wald zieht, und wieso ihre Ankunft so viel Reibung erzeugt.

Schlussendlich ist Wald ein Film, zu dem ich sicher zurückkommen werde; bin dahin rastet er in der Seelenfutter-Schublade und wartet. Dieser Little Forest auf Österreichisch (irgendwie) möchte einiges sagen, bringt zwar nicht alles heraus, lässt aber dafür mehr als genug fühlen. Wer 95 Minuten Raum zum Atmen braucht, der ist hier wunderbar aufgehoben.

PS: Eine persönliche Anmerkung (Achtung, hier kommt ein Spoiler!): Von Anfang an dachte ich mir, „irgendwie müsste sie (Marian) queer sein, dann würde das für mich jetzt funktionieren.“ Und dann war diese queere Dimension tatsächlich keine Einbildung meinerseits, sondern ein eigener, kleiner Spannungsbogen, der auch irgendwo seine Auflösung (oder zumindest eine durchaus ansprechenswerte Kenntnisnahme) findet. Allein dafür!