Wednesday October 28th, 2020
The Baltic Cinema Review was established in 2015 to promote the film industry of the Baltic Sea region among the international audience of the EnergaCAMERIMAGE festival. During the several editions of the Review we have established a broad network of contacts, through which we are able to reach the most interesting and visually stunning film productions from the region and other cooperating countries. Our intent is to select films that, in addition to their visual values, explore subjects important to the inhabitants of the region and take into account phenomena relevant to the cinematography of a given country. We invite you to watch films from the Baltic Sea countries. Here is the line-up of this year’s Review:
ABOUT ENDLESSNESS
A mosaic of short etudes filmed with a static camera in a single shot (with only one exception) depicts seemingly trivial situations and dramatic events in modern, historical, realisticyet- absurd, and metaphysical scenes. Most of these visually ascetic and simultaneously perfect images are commented on from outside the frame by the female voice of today’s Scheherazade. All of them make up a melancholic panorama of different shades of life, submerged in subdued colours of autumn and silence, rarely interrupted by music.
Original title: Om det oändliga
Polish title: O nieskończoności
Director: Roy Andersson
Cinematographer: Gergely Pálos
Produced by: 4 1/2 Film AS, Essential Filmproduktion, Roy Andersson Filmproduktion
Polish distributor: Aurora Films
Country and year: Sweden, Germany, Norway, France, 2019
ANOTHER ROUND
FILM UNAVAILABLE ONLINE
There is a theory according to which even a small dose of alcohol in a person’s body makes them more outspoken, creative, and vigorous. Why not give this thesis a go? Especially if you feel old, exhausted, and burned out, and are surrounded with people with high expectations – like the film’s main character, a high school teacher named Martin. The man and his three friends decide to start drinking – in moderation, but on a daily basis. At first, the results of this experiment seem promising, but this does not last long...
Original title: Druk
Polish title: Na rauszu
Director: Thomas Vinterberg
Cinematographer: Sturla Brandth Grøvlen
Produced by: Zentropa Entertainments
Country and year: Denmark, 2019
HOPE
Anja and Tomas are two adults with artistic backgrounds. They live in a civil partnership, raising five children: three of their own and two from Tomas’s previous marriage. Consumed by work, the spark of happiness between the two is gone. They also face the consequences of not having paid enough attention to their children. However, it will be but a trifle when faced with a dramatic situation which will make the family face a serious challenge, ironically during the joy of Christmas time. The film is a true story presented naturally by convincing actors.
Original title: Håp
Polish title: Nadzieja
Director: Maria Sødahl
Cinematographers: Manuel Alberto Claro
Produced by: Motlys, Oslo Pictures
Polish distributor: Aurora Films
Country and year: Norway, Sweden, 2019
MOTHERLAND
Soon after the fall of the Soviet Union, following her extended stay in the US, 40-year-old Victorija returns home to Lithuania with Kovas, her son, born overseas. The boy experiences his mother’s motherland for the first time. Through his eyes, we see Victorija’s efforts to reassimilate to the country that has drastically changed while she was gone and to claim her family’s estate. This storytelling provides both subtlety and lyricism, clearly captured in the beautiful cinematography of the deceased Audrius Kemežys.
Original title: Gimtiné
Director: Tomas Vengris
Cinematographer: Audrius Kemežys
Produced by: Heimathafen Film, Locomotive Productions, Studio Uljana Kim
Country and year: Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, Greece, 2019
SPY, THE
World War II is raging when Sonja Wigert, a Norwegian theatre and movie diva, sparks the interest of German Nazis. They hope to use her for their propaganda, promising her the role of her dreams. At the same time, anti-fascist intelligence wants to recruit Sonja to spy on an important Nazi figure - the same man who has a say in her career and shows an interest in more than just her art. Which side will Sonja pick when she needs to make her resolve clear? The film is a refined thriller based on facts disclosed 15 years ago.
Original title: Spionen
Polish title: Agentka
Director: Jens Jonsson
Cinematographer: Anton Mertens
Produced by: 4 1/2 Fiksjon, B-Reel Films, Film i Väst, Nordisk Film
Polish distributor: Mayfly
Country and year: Norway, 2019
TRUTH AND JUSTICE
A young farmer named Andres and his wife Krõõt settle in a godforsaken part of Estonia. The man believes that with hard work and God’s grace, he can achieve happiness. However, personal drama and a long-lasting quarrel with a hot-blooded neighbour impede his plans. Losing himself in work, searching obsessively for truth and justice, Andres is torn between home, church, court, and a tavern, tormented by destructive emotions. An epic adaptation of a novel by the classic author of Estonian realist literature, Anton Hansen Tammsaare, the film commands attention with its visual representation of humanity’s ties to nature and landscape, owing much to the cinematographer Rein Kotov.
Original title: Tõde ja õigus
Director: Tanel Toom
Cinematographer: Rein Kotov
Produced by: Allfilm
Country and year: Estonia, 2019
FINANCED BY THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND NATIONAL HERITAGE OF THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND AS PART OF THE TASK: CO-ORGANIZATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OF THE ART OF CINEMATOGRAPHY EnergaCAMERIMAGE 2024
CO-FINANCED BY: THE CITY OF TORUŃ AND KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE REGION
