Category: Revelation Perth International Film Festival

Review: Hail Satan?

Satanists get a bad rap. At least that’s what director Penny Lane sets out to show in this documentary with an unusual subject. Or at least it would be odd for any filmmaker who hadn’t previously helmed a doco about a radio magnate who possibly implanted goat testicles into the scrotums of his human patients.

The goat connection continues in HAIL SATAN? as the Satanists work towards the separation of church and state by lobbying to erect a statue of Baphomet at a government building. The notion may seem ridiculous at first, at least until they start to point out how many Christian tenants have made their way into the various instruments of government in the United States.

This is where Lane’s narrative is at its strongest. Showcasing the history of religious iconography in America’s seats of power, we see that many of the ‘sacred’ tenants – such as “In God We Trust” – trace their power to the anti-Communist hysteria of the 1950s and 60s and moral crusaders like Billy Graham. Similarly, Lane explores the Satanic Panic of later decades, with everything from heavy metal to television being blamed for the decay of Christian values in the homes of Americans.

Lane contrasts this with the modern day Satanic Temple under Lucien Greaves, a group that not only leads the fight against institutional monotheism but does a lot of charity work as well. Like Christianity, Lane shows us that satanism isn’t a homogenous entity with infighting and differing approaches across the nation. One member is expelled for effectively practicing hate speech against the 45th President of the United States.

There is also some tension coming from the Satanic Temple’s credo: they claim they are holding a satirical mirror up to hypocrisy, but they also base many of their arguments on being a legit religion. The documentary never reconciles this, nor does it push its often over-the-top subjects on this, but it has a lot of fun exploring the group along the way.

HAIL SATAN? ultimately leaves us with a very legitimate question, and not just the one in the title: if one religion’s artefacts can grace the lawn of capital hill, then should all religions have a slice of that real estate? It’s not a question that Lane needs to answer in this documentary, and nor is it the sole responsibility of the Satanic Temple. Yet by the end of the film, one of the groups in this debate sounds completely irrational, and it isn’t the Satanists.

2019 | US | DIR: Penny Lane | WRITER: Penny Lane| CAST: Lucien Greaves, Satanic Temple members | DISTRIBUTOR: Madman Films, Revelation Film Festival (AUS) | RUNNING TIME: 95 minutes | RELEASE DATE: 8-15 July 2019 (RevFest), 11 July 2019 (AUS)

July 7, 2019
RevFest 2019: 11 films to see at Perth’s Revelation Film Festival
Now in its 22nd year, the Revelation Perth International Film Festival is back to give Western Australians a healthy dose of film-related goodness between 4 and 17 July 2019.

With 27 features, 32 documentaries, 42 shorts, and a whole lot of events, there’s a lot to get through in the two-week period.

To make your lives a little easier, we’ve hand-picked the clickbaitable headline of 11 must-see films. Odd numbers play better for social engagement, you see.
MONOS: A completely immersive and harrowing experience. This is not one you watch so much as survive. Now I’m cold and west and waiting instructions. May we all think fondly of Shakira the Milk Cow as we journey through this life together.
CHILDREN OF THE SEA: Some of the psychedelic animation was amazing, and totally did my head in. Which might explain why I had no idea what was going on half the time. A rare chance to see brand new Japanese animation on the big screen.
FRAMING JOHN DELOREAN: Made famous by Back to the Future, the man behind the car has story even more fantastic than time travel. A mixture of documentary footage, interviews, and drama featuring Alec Baldwin, where this film is going we don’t need roads.
MILES DAVIS: THE BIRTH OF COOL: I’ll admit that the gap in my musical knowledge is jazz, so this doco provides a solid primer for a career and has done an amazing job by summarising a life and getting me to go and seek out more of his albums.
THE FINAL QUARTER: Pulled together entirely from archival footage, this look at the last few years of the career of Adam Goodes becomes a disturbing examination of not just how the media treats race, but the undercurrent of racism that is inherent in our nation’s structures.
THE WIND: While it doesn’t always hit the right marks, this western-cum-psychological thriller is still fascinating to watch. A beautifully shot and haunting scored film, the leaps are occasionally jarring, but that’s kind of the point. It’s no Repulsion, but it’s still a distant relation.
THE QUIET EARTH: A special RevFest screening of this 1985 New Zealand sci-fi film about the last human on the planet. Directed by the late Geoff Murphy (Young Guns II, 2nd unit on the Lord of the Rings trilogy, you should jump at the chance to see this cult favourite on the big screen.
INTERNATIONAL FALLS: RevFest presents the Australia debut of Amber McGinnis’ (The Company We Keep) comedy-drama set in the small town of International Falls, Minnesota. I wonder if this is closer to St. Olaf or the purifying waters of Lake Minnetonka?
HAIL SATAN?: A crowd favourite at the Sydney Film Festival in June, this is a mostly fun documentary that uses a singular subject to explore the influence of monotheism in state institutions as some Satanists try to erect a statue of Baphomet.
MEMORY: THE ORIGINS OF ALIEN: Alexandre O. Phillipe’s exploration of one of the greatest science fiction and horror films of all time is essential for fans of cinema and comes complete with interviews from Veronica Cartwright, Ron Shusett, Diane O’Bannon, and Tom Skerritt.
DRAGGED ACROSS CONCRETE: Director S. Craig Zahler (the underrated Bone Tomahawk) brings Mel Gibson back to the police force alongside Vince Vaughn. The film has earned fans since its debut in Venice last year, and should appeal to heist fans everywhere.
July 2, 2019
Interview: ‘Watch the Sunset’ producer/cinematographer Damien Lipp on shooting a single-take film

Photo by Julian Dolman – © Julian Dolman photography

WATCH THE SUNSET, a new Australian film from directors Tristan Barr and Michael Gosden, is debuting at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival this week. It’s set inside a group of ice addicts and criminals. It’s also shot in one take.

Focusing on an outlaw bikie gang member, audiences are dragged into the tale by the filmmaker’s real-time approach. We chatted with producer/cinematographer Damien Lipp about the process of shooting a film in a single session.

“We started about 4:20 in the afternoon, as the sun was in a perfect spot,” explains Lipp, “and I think it was 83 minutes after that the sun was setting.” Shot on location in the country town of Kerang in Victoria, it tells the the story of Danny (played by director Barr), an ex-con racing against the clock with his terrified family. “It was in the timeline of an afternoon, so there was no breaks,” he adds. “The audience had to come along for the ride, no matter what.”

Lipp and Jesse Gohier-Fleet shoot Chelsea Zeller on Watch the Sunset.

From an early stage in its development, the filmmakers always wanted to play with the concept of time. “One of the scenes out of True Detective…really captivated us. We hadn’t seen Victoria….the German film. At the beginning, WATCH THE SUNSET started with a long scene. It was an idea that Tristan had,”elaborates Lipp. “Cut the film with six or seven long takes. At the end of the day, I thought we could get away with doing it in one shot, and follow different characters’ stories throughout that one shot.”

Sitting behind the seamless narrative are about 85 people and five weeks of rehearsal, and a cast and crew who already had a relationship. “We went up with our family and shot a film. Everybody knew everybody…The extras, the choir and everything like that was all set-up. We had lots of classrooms donate their time, we had the choir from Kerang donate their time, the people from the motel.” Even with the preparation, the first time the film played out in real time was on the day of production. “It wasn’t until the very first day of shooting that we’d actually shoot the film in one continuous shot.”

“Every cog just needs to be spinning right, and if one’s missing or one’s out of place, then it falls to pieces,” Lipp continues. “It was like we filmed a theatre play really. Letting the actors work in the environment, it was a real day, the town was really going. We were shooting, there were cars in front of us as we were driving that were slower than us, there were police around. It was actually an exhilarating shoot.”

Tristan Barr in Watch the Sunset

The method of production allowed the filmmakers flexibility, but also came with some limitations. “We had to shoot with a DSLR and a smaller gimbal, because we couldn’t fit the bigger gimbal system through the car door,” says Lipp.

Looking ahead, BarrLipp Productions are giving themselves very little rest between features. “We fly out of Perth on Friday, then we drive to Queensland for the next film. We’re shooting it on Sunday [23 July 2017]. The next film we’re shooting is called ONE, where the population of Earth is one. There’s only one human being left, we’ve all been eradicated.”

“It’s not going to be a one-take film,” Lipp hastens to add. “It’s going to be a very stylised film with long takes. One of the things we’re trying to do is make Australian cinema different to the Australian cinema that we’ve seen before. Trying to make it different, give people something that they haven’t seen before.”

If some of those people are inspired by what they see, Lipp’s advice is simple: “Just get out there, pick a camera up, and make a film. It is possible to do anything.”

Supported by Film Victoria, WATCH THE SUNSET plans a theatrical run following the festival screenings, including the Brisbane International Film Festival and some Sydney showings. It makes its world debut at Revelation Film Festival on 11 July 2017.

July 10, 2017
Perth’s Revelation Film Festival announces crowdfunding campaign

Celebrating it’s 20th anniversary, the Revelation Perth International Film Festival launched a crowdfunding campaign today that aims to raise $20,000 for the Festival’s 20^th anniversary. The money raised will go towards key speakers and seminars, architectural projections, 16mm micro cinema and a fortnight of free family screenings.

“Our desire to provide as many free events as we can and to take a lead in creating something new means we need to explore other support and hence this campaign,” said Festival Director Richard Sowada. “It’s also gone from being ten days a year to effectively a year-round activity through video-on-demand, our monthly Australian Revelations screenings and our Fringe World program in summer.”

RevFest’s approach follows several other successful campaigns from around the world. Last year, Samphire became the fastest-ever successfully funded music festival on Crowdfunder, offering audiences an alternative to the proliferation of mainstream fare. 2016 also saw Australia’s Tropfest turn to crowdfunding following the surprising news that it was going to be cancelled following a “terrible mismanagement of funds.”

Our coverage of last year’s event demonstrates the festival’s commitment to indie and underground films from around the world. As a result, the RevFest has come a long way from its humble 1997 origins in the basement backroom in Perth’s Greenwich Club with one person, two ancient 16mm projectors and 12 films. Today it boasts over 13,000 festival guests viewing over 120 international films presented at cinemas, galleries, cafes and bars across Perth.

The campaign has a number of perks for potential funders, so check out the campaign on how you can contribute and what you can get in return.

March 27, 2017
Review: Suburra

A classy thriller about politics and the mob, one that keeps escalating its drama at every turn.

Director Stefano Sollima is no stranger to exploring mob crime and corruption in modern Italy. Having previously directed the acclaimed TV series Romanzo Criminale, his debut feature ACAB – All Cops Are Bastards led to Sollima adapting Roberto Saviano’s Gamorrah to the small screen as another series. With SUBURRA, he elevates the lives of his players to operatic levels, in a tight piece that never lets up for a moment.

Based on the novel by Carlo Bonini and Giancarlo De Cataldo, the title draws its name from a suburb in Ancient Rome. A crime boss known only as “Samurai” (Claudio Amendola) is determined to convert a waterfront area into a massive casino area, something that everyone from politicians to the Vatican will profit from. However, when an underaged prostitute dies during a sexy and drugs party hosted by Italian MP Filippo Malgradi (Pierfrancesco Favino), it starts a snowball effect of violence and retribution in the shadow of an imploding political system.

There is a lot going on in SUBURRA, maybe even too much at times, and the myriad of characters each wants their own piece of the pie. It’s the kind of film where you need to be paying constant attention, as the motivations of the various pimps, prostitutes, politicians, pushers, psychopaths and even Popes can change on a dime. Like the classic mafia films of bygone eras, the butterfly effect of one action inevitably leads to an equally harsh reaction from another player, but where it comes from is often the shock factor. This is because once the film gets going, it rarely pauses for breath, escalating from kidnapping, to extortion and mass murder with an atmospheric M83 soundtrack dominating the soundscape.

Co-funded by Netflix, with the intention of a follow-up series to commence in 2017, SUBURRA is a slick modern production. Everything is bathed in a purple neon underglow, giving even the most innocuous corners a sense of seediness. Even the gratuitous sex sequences are explicit, it’s in a Penthouse kind of way, a formal eroticism that gives way to chaos. It may not do much for the Italian tourism industry, but it does restore the heightened drama of the genre to its glory days, albeit with a contemporary twist.

SUBURRA is playing at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival, 7-19 July 2016. It also screens at the Melbourne International Film Festival 28 July – 14 August 2016.

2015 | Italy | DIR: Stefano Sollima | WRITERS: Stefano Rulli, Sandro Petraglia, Carlo Bonini, Giancarlo De Cataldo | CAST: Pierfrancesco Favino, Elio Germano, Claudio Amendola | DISTRIBUTOR: Madman Entertainment (AUS) | RUNNING TIME: 130 minutes | RATING: ★★★★¼

July 16, 2016
Review: Dude Bro Party Massacre III (Revelation Film Festival 2016)

It’s the most shocking and brutal of the Dude Bro Party Massacre series to date. Just don’t go looking for the first two.

In the 1980s, a film was created that was so visceral and disturbing that all known copies were destroyed under an executive order from US President Ronald Reagan. Thanks to a cable screening on the Midnight Morning Movie, a young fan’s VHS copy has survived the ravages of time. The film can finally be presented to the public, whether they are prepared for it or not.

At least that’s what the opening scrawl of DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III tells us. In reality, it’s the brainchild of the 5 Second Films collective, an online comedy group with millions of viewers. Their feature is the result of a successful Kickstarter campaign, and it’s a mix of 80s horror tributes, outright parody and the just plain strange. Following previous murders involving the Delta Bis fraternity, survivor Brock is killed by the revived Motherface. Thankfully, his twin brother Brent (Alec Owen) joins the remaining Dude Bros (in a cabin by the lake, of course) to solve this mystery once and for all.

There’s a fine line between parody and just plain bad, and DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III merrily crosses it, stomps on it, and burns it to the ground. Reversing traditional genre gender roles, the titular dudes are dismissive of girls and losing their virginity, and are the first to be picked off by a female killer. Flipping through every horror trope in the book, the film goes one step further by using the same part of the brain pan that cooked up Adult Swim’s Too Many Cooks. We watched that repetitive and bizarre sitcom parody because the archetypes were familiar, but the execution (both literal and figurative) had its movie-literate tongue firmly in cheek. Here the filmmakers don’t simply recreate a horror film from the era, but subvert it with over-the-top surrealism and beautiful non-sequitur moments (“Help! I’m trapped in a basement and forced to write subtitles!”). The train-of-thought approach is almost too much of a good thing, stuck somewhere between a feature-length YouTube skit and the Wet Hot American Summer series.

With constant tracking problems along the bottom of the screen, the movie is designed to mirror the look and feel of 80s video nasties. There’s even snippets of terrible cable infomercials from where the pause button was pressed, a familiar sight to amateur editors of the day. Bad films are usually more fun when the filmmakers aren’t in on the joke, and The Room‘s Greg Sestero stars as if to prove that point. Nevertheless, DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III seems to be an exception to this rule, shamelessly and merrily diving head-first into the kitchen sink of brotastic mayhem.

DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III is playing at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival, 7-19 July 2016.

2015 | US | DIR: Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet and Jon Salmon | WRITERS: Alec Owen and the cast | CAST: Alec Owen, Patton Oswalt, Paul Prado, Brian Firenzi, Kelsey Gunn | DISTRIBUTOR: Revelation Film Festival | RUNNING TIME: 103 minutes | RATING: ★★★½

July 12, 2016
Review: Nuts!

Truth is stranger than fiction in this forgotten slice of American history. Or is it the other way around?

Film is deceptive by its very nature, creating something out nothing to transport the viewer to a world that may not be real, filled with characters that probably never existed. Documentary, on the other hand, is seen to be about exposing the truth, or crafting an investigative text on a subject. Penny Lane’s NUTS! is both of these things, reeling us into a tale that lives up to its title, before whipping the rug out from underneath us.

Using a combination of roughly hewn animation and talking heads, Lane explores the singular personality of Dr. John R. Brinkley, purveyor of impotence cures and radio pioneer in the first half of the 20th century. The first half of NUTS! depicts Brinkley as a man who struggled at every turn, to become a doctor, fight the powers that be, and being one of the first to broadcast country music widely across America. He came to notoriety when he allegedly made thousands of successful operations, xenotransplanting goat testicles into humans to increase virility. This alone would be a fascinating narrative, even if it was the whole story.

Opening as it does on the animated vision of two goats humping, Lane trains us from the start to expect the unexpected. Brinkley was well documented as a huckster and a fraud, and his fame and popularity demonstrated a skill in manipulating human desire to believe the impossible. Before we realise the extent of Brinkley’s deception, there’s nothing in the narrative that seems completely unreasonable, even if it’s always a little strange. As conned as his victim’s were, there’s a definite parallel to modern scams, and alternative medicine literally put on trial. Brinkley’s supporters argued for the right to “choose my own doctor,” scarily mirroring everything from detoxers to anti-vaxxers.

The style of NUTS! is always disconcerting, the slow narration and vocal acting sometimes at odds with the animated action on screen. It’s an unassuming film, almost playing like a PBS made-for-TV doco, one that downplays its own insanity. This is kind of the point though, to draw us in with a good story, but perhaps keep us questioning all the while. When the other shoe falls, it’s like a good con: we know we’ve been suckered, but the purveyor has already got us in hook, line and sinker.

NUTS! is playing at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival, 7-19 July 2016. It also screens at the Melbourne International Film Festival 28 July – 14 August 2016.

2016 | US | DIR: Penny Lane | CAST: Gene Tognacci, Andy Boswell, Thom Stylinski | DISTRIBUTOR: RevFest/MIFF (AUS) | RUNNING TIME: 79 minutes | RATING: ★★★★

July 10, 2016
Review: Weiner

One of the most famous penises in politics is only part of the story in this fascinating fly-on-the-wall piece that is part redemption story, part confessional and part examination of the media machine.

Anthony Weiner is incredibly frank from the start of this documentary about the reasons for his current fame. “The punchline is true about me,” he admits. “I did the things. But I did a lot of other things too.” As if to underline the point, a montage of images follows this confession, showcasing the firebrand congressman’s impassioned and unyielding speeches in favour of health care and low-income housing. Weiner was one of the Democrat’s most fiery defenders of the underdogs. Bill Clinton spoke at his wedding. He was a leading light in politics, at least until he accidentally tweeted a picture of his crotch in 2011.

WEINER is a chronicle of what happens when a singular personality is forced to use his energy to defend lifestyle choices instead of the things he stands for politically. The film is set around his 2013 New York mayoral campaign, a lifelong ambition that he also saw as the “straightest line” to cleaning up the mess resulting from his public extra-marital liaisons. Filmmakers Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg’s get access to the work and life of Weiner and his wife Huma Abedin on the trail, but the film really becomes a exemplar of how the media truly runs the agenda for his campaign. Weiner’s exasperation is tangible, and the documentary is a virtual timeline of his temperament turning from defensive to attack mode, turning on the media and even his own film crew at times.

The titular Weiner’s woes are only half of the story, with the editing careful to quietly show the impact on Abedin and Weiner’s family. Abedin is largely known as Hillary Clinton’s right-hand, acting as both campaign manager and personal assistant. A number of media volleys questioned her judgment in sticking by her husband, especially when a second and more explicit wave of genital selfies emerges. Clearly reluctant to step into the spotlight, WEINER shows someone who is both politically savvy and devastatingly human forced to publicly deal with the indiscretions of her partner as the latter becomes the butt of jokes from late night hosts.

With the exception of a few direct questions from the filmmakers, and the occasional request for them to leave the room, the camera captures all of these non-verbal moments. Eli B. Despres’ (Blackfish) skillful editing places these off-guard moments alongside the consummate showmanship of Weiner, giving us an idea of how he went from argumentative politician to fighting with citizens in a bakery. There are a few curious moments when we feel participatory in the insanity, with certain scenes sharply bringing our recent engagement with the mockery back into focus. WEINER shows us that the future of public office is set, and a stark warning of what happens when emotion rules decisions just in time for the 2016 US presidential elections. Indeed, with social media making nothing a secret anymore, the subjects of this film may seem quaint in a few decades time.

WEINER is playing at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival, 7-19 July 2016. It also screens at the Melbourne International Film Festival 28 July – 14 August 2016. It is also in limited release in Australia (NSW, ACT) from 28 July 2016 from Madman.

2016 | US | DIR: Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg | CAST: Anthony Weiner, Huma Abedin | DISTRIBUTOR: Madman Entertainment | RUNNING TIME: 96 minutes | RATING: ★★★★½

July 8, 2016
Review: Little Sister (Revelation Film Festival 2016)

A nun going a little bit rogue could fit into almost any genre, but instead it’s a disarmingly political study of a dysfunctional family.

“Fail to see the tragic? Turn it into magic!” Taken from Marilyn Manson’s “Dope Hat,” a track largely musing on addiction’s control over the user, it’s an apt opening quote for a film where all the members of this family are addicted to something. Zach Clark, one of the most indie of filmmakers, follows up 2013’s White Reindeer with LITTLE SISTER, which is both infused with political commentary and a quirky collection of characters.

A period film of sorts, setting the film just prior to the 2008 election of US President Barack Obama, a brief period that mixes resignation with renewed hope. Young novice nun Colleen (Addison Timlin) is given the covent’s car for five days in order to reconnect with her family in North Carolina. Summoned by her troubled mother Joani (Ally Sheedy), she arrives to mark the return of her brother Jacob (Keith Poulson) from hospital, after being badly burned over his entire face and body during wartime. Her room is as she left it, covered in dark ephemera from the goth days she once shared with her brother. Her parents both addicted to marijuana and other recreational drugs, and Jacob a total recluse, she must deal with her own unresolved issues with her family and help them uncover their own.

Clark’s sense of irreverent humour comes across clearly in the title cards. After being told by Mother Superior that god created the world in seven days, so Colleen should be able to sort out her problems in five, each ‘chapter’ is punctuated by a title card that marks ‘The First Day’ and so on. Timlin’s Colleen is easy to connect to thanks to her deceptively mousey strain of weird, something that LITTLE SISTER celebrates at every turn. This does, after all, have a scene built around Colleen lip-syncing to Gwar’s “Have You Seen Me?” in a faux-blood covered nun’s habit – and it’s strangely adorable. Colleen’s ability to relate to the audience is essential as this focused family study refuses to shy away from their dysfunction.

Jacob’s drums, and the occasional bit of goth music, act as he staccato soundtrack for the film, breaking even the most quiet moments of reverie with pounding bass. Clark’s regular cinematographer Daryl Pittman shoots some lovely pieces that make full use of natural light, contrasted with the heightened colours of the interiors at times. Clark skirts along the edges of being saccharine, but widely avoids it, touching on animal liberation activists, the horrors of war and addiction, but never in an overt way. A film where strange is essential.

LITTLE SISTER is playing at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival, 7-19 July 2016.

2016 | US | DIR: Zach Clark | WRITERS: Zach Clark | CAST: Addison Timlin, Keith Poulson, Ally Sheedy | DISTRIBUTOR: Revelation Film Festival | RUNNING TIME: 91 minutes | RATING: ★★★★

In the absence of a trailer, here’s some Gwar.

July 7, 2016
Review: The Whispering Star (Revelation Film Festival 2016)

Sion Sono’s hypnotic, lo-fi journey through the stars is a wholly unique experience, and an amazing accomplishment in visually-driven storytelling.

It’s possible Japanese director and avant garde artist Sion Sono never stops making films. Indeed, credited with 6 features in 2015 alone, many of them disappear in the international market, so it’s always a treat when one of them features at our many festivals. His films to date have been taste-pushing and overindulgent forays into sex and violence (Guilty of Romance), four hour epics in the case of Love Exposure, or more emotional character-focused studies (Himizu). With THE WHISPERING STAR, Sono delves into science-fiction territory, and proves to be a master of that as well.

Set in an universe where 80% of the population is made up of androids. The film follows a female unit named Yoko (Megumi Kagurazaka) whose job it is to deliver parcels to distant human outposts. Each trip takes years to make, and the ship itself looks like a traditional Japanese house with an engine on the back of it. Her only companion, and one of the handful of whispered voices in the film, is the ship’s computer. Shot in stark black and white, the real-life devastated area of Fukushima doubles as the alien landscapes she visits in this lo-fi sci-fi flick.

Science-fiction works best when it is commenting on human issues, and Sono has been exploring the unspeakable losses of a post-Fukushima Japan since at least Himizu, along with a fictive version in 2012’s The Land of Hope. Where those films explored the societal fallout in a post-disaster setting, this goes one step further to explore humanity via a post-human narrative. Simple repetition, opening on a pot of tea being boiled over the course of a week (or is it 7 different pots being prepared?), not only messes with our notion of time but sets the tone early. We are witnessing the echoing fragments of humanity, androids imbued with our habits. Yoko deliveries contain knick-knacks and other human ephemera, eliciting emotive responses from recipients who had almost forgotten their meaning. Yoko herself is human enough to catch a cold, feeling odd moments of curiosity, all the while replacing her own AA batteries when she senses a malfunction.

Shot in high-contrast black and white, there’s a little bit of Andrei Tarkovsky in the genes of this film, representing something of a departure from Sono’s earlier excesses. The stunning and unreal exteriors of the ship/house are like a hyper-real Georges Méliès on crack, while Hideo Yamamoto’s (The Grudge, Audition) crisp photography of Fukushima’s landscapes contrast their understated chaos against the slate-grey of the skies. The handful of humans in these environments, actually cast from the region, can be seen as either the last vestiges of humanity or artifacts themselves. Sound design is just as deliberate, with the taciturn dialogue never raising above a whisper, even when Yoko is recording her thoughts on a reel-to-reel tape deck. On one planet, any sound above 30 decibels is outlawed, and all human interaction is seen in silhouetted shadowplay.

THE WHISPERING STAR is one of Sono’s most mature works to date, not simply because it is free of the sexualised violence that has dominated those works released outside of Japan. Sono’s frequent collaborator Kagurazaka is terrific in the lead, a thematic extension of the restrained housewife in Guilty of Romance. It’s a film that allows viewers to explore the space in between moments, all the while reminding us to ask how humans can continue to define themselves in the wake of a massive tragedy that took away many of the things that defined that humanity.

2015 | Japan | DIR: Sion Sono | WRITERS: Sion Sono | CAST: Megumi Kagurazaka, Kenji Endo, Yûto Ikeda | DISTRIBUTOR: Revelation Film Festival | RUNNING TIME: 100 minutes | RATING: ★★★★

July 5, 2016