CANNES 2009: LESSONS LEARNED
Written by Matt Bochenski on May 19th, 2009
excerpt:
I caught three films on my first day (I sacrificed one for a free drinks reception. I’m either learning or letting myself down; not sure which.). My very first Cannes film was an authentic art turn from Filippino director Raya Martin. Independencia (trailer) is stunningly shot in black and white (I haven’t got my programme so I’m not sure what film stock was used, but it looked like a kind of weird super-8 almost). Though set in the jungle, it’s been filmed in a studio with artificial painted backdrops. This, combined with the film stock, gives Martin’s picture a kind of folkloric quality fitting to the title. It’s about a mother and son who flee the advance of American troops. They take to the jungle while the towns are occupied, rescuing a girl who, it’s suggested, gives birth after being raped. The family live out their days in harmony with the land, until the soldiers eventually find them. Deliberately theatrical and old-fashioned, Independencia is a richly metaphorical, allusive collision of history, mythology and cultural memory. Full of long takes and stylized close ups, but sizzling beneath with raw-knuckled sexuality, it’s occasionally hard work but is hugely rewarding. Before the screening, Martin took to the stage to dedicate the film to his nephews (or cousins, maybe), declaring that one day he hoped people would be able to die ‘for their country, and for cinema!’ This vaguely psychotic death wish got a few embarrassed chuckles, but good on Martin for believing in something so boldly.
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