Long theme 26, our protagonist – in The final credit was only “101” (Cem Ali Gültekin) – no idea what happened. He found himself in horrific scenes of violence and carnage, sometimes with a gun himself. He seems to wake up from them, only to find himself in another cruel illusion. A scar on his shoulder came and went. The tattoo on his arm changed shape. He lost any sense of time, self and control.
Most of the time, we were as clueless as he was. What happened to him is not entirely a mystery. Writer-director Tom Bewilogua planted clues about the Manchurian candidate’s -style mind control scene before we had a chance to ask. But we’re just as unsure as he is about what’s real and what’s not about what he’s really been used for and why. It’s a very disorienting experience, even if — or especially because of — theme 101 The resolution provided by the end is too low.
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Bottom line A nightmarish journey of getting lost.
Place: Oldenburg Film Festival
Throwing: Cem Ali Gültekin, Antonio Wannek, Janina Elkin, Guntbert Warns, Guido Foehrweisser, David Berton, Youssef Maghrebi
Director and screenwriter: Tom Bewilogua 1 hour 26 minute
while subject ‘s central premise is a dystopian science fiction (as the movie itself points out via background news reports about the future of microchip technology) that is firmly rooted in the real world – especially the burgers 2019. A Syrian refugee looking for housing and employment signed up for a business program co-sponsored by the German government, which at first seemed to be just what he needed. The apartment he gave was small and shabby — and, in a disturbing omen, covered in the blood of a former tenant — and the work he was assigned was not exciting. But he is settling in, making the space his own, learning German in his free time and slowly adjusting to his colleagues.
Then he’s shot in a shady security gig with a menacing figure (Guido Föhrweisser) in a police car – the license plate starts with “666” because Subject 26 Useless for Cunning – find him when he passes out. Eventually, our protagonist wakes up with a beard he didn’t have when he passed out, and a cut in his shoulder that he can’t explain. Then the real nightmare began.
Bewilogua gave us everything and left us feeling overwhelmed. The scene is lit in eerie greens and reds (the colors of the Syrian flag, certainly not a coincidence), surrounded by velvety black shadows like a void. The camera (with Alex Bell serving as DP) leans at odd angles and winds down corridors that have nothing to do with where they are. Ultra wide-angle lenses and surveillance cameras can create a sense of paranoia, while extreme close-ups can make faces unrecognizable. Theme 26 sometimes targets a straight-up horror, accompanied by bones The effect and vision of the crunching sound meat is so distorted, like hamburger meat. But it can have a bigger impact, like the weirdness of a half-eaten apple in a pool of blood, or a child’s smiley balloon floating inadvertently across the room.
Whatever happened to the character left him speechless, and since he was the only one on screen for most of the movie, the theme 666 leaned heavily against Gültekin’s expressive face. His large eyes grew larger and rounder with despair or bewilderment, sank with grief, or sluggish with indifference. He’s a character that gets our sympathy simply because it’s obvious he’s been forced into a dire situation, but it’s Gültekin’s steadfast performance that keeps us firmly in his mind as he yanks from a hell to Another hell.
In the fog, other voices cut through the media. Of particular note is the frequent lack of updates on the fruitless search for a suspected terrorist and Syrian refugee (Youssef Maghrebi), who recently disappeared after making seemingly bizarre claims about mind control. But there are other recurring themes, too, like footage of wars past and present that often play on the protagonist’s TV, or calm warnings of the “chaos and disorientation” that a recession could accompany, or, God forbid, a pandemic. (Here I remind you that the movie’s setting is 2019.) They create unsettling anxiety and fear, sprinkled with unsettling A little bit of optimism for confidence, that is, they amount to a media diet, as many of us consume on a daily basis.
However, while theme 26 is good at provoking uncomfortable emotions or asking sensitive questions, but not so good at figuring out what it wants to do with them calling them all up. Halfway through the 26 minute run time, I started to suspect whole The rest of the film will be a series of geeky rug pulls with no clear end in sight; thankfully shifting the focus for the time being to a more level-headed character (Gantbert Warnes), Begin to let the plot of Act 3 start all over again. Even so, the film ends more like a bunch of thoughts and feelings than a coherent narrative or message. Those who like their thrillers to explain all their awkward edges may find themselves particularly pissed off.
Although maybe that’s the point too. Subject 26 Without making new diagnoses or suggesting cures for the ills of society, it There is no claim to know any of these directions. Instead, it acts like a playful mirror of what many of us already feel in the air—a deep distrust and despair, a bewilderment that borders on hopelessness. It’s not going to bring anyone any comfort, and it’s sure to frustrate anyone looking for specific answers. But for a certain mindset, it might provide some validation.
26 Full credits
Venue: Oldenburg Film Festival Production company: K26/7
Cast: Cem Ali Gültekin, Antonio Wannek, Janina Elkin, Guntbert Warns, Guido Foehrweisser, David Berton, Youssef Maghrebi
Director & Screenwriter: Tom Bewilogua
Producer: Chris Kruger
Executive Producer: Billy Plymouth Director of Photography: Alex Bell Production Design: Anna Petersen, Nele Hinze, Margarethe Mast
Editor: Tom Box
Music: Gordon Kerry 1 hour 26 Minutes 26 THR Newsletter
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