So many thoughtful and knowledgeable comments have preceded this one, I'll be (uncharacteristically) brief: It seems to me that the form and aesthetics of the film are so dominant, and the walloping capital-S symbolism of the whale, the helicopter, the Prince, etc. are so overt, that it's not much use to dwell on them yet again in a short review.
(Also, I agree with those who think that the symbolism doesn't quite gel into a cohesive whole -- if we're trying to read a consistent symbolism structure under the plot, which maybe we just don't have to.)
But it may be of some help to those who haven't seen the film, or those who have and seek a structure on which to hang their analyses, to mention some apparent influences or connections.
Tarkovsky is an often-mentioned one. 'Tis slow, 'tis tracking shots, yes yes. But I wonder tho: is Tarkovsky brought up because of the starkness, the slowness, the Euroweirdness alone, or do Tarkovsky's ideas (whatever they may be; it's too much to go into here) also resonate? And if the influence is purely aesthetic, then what are the exciting ideas at work under the skin?
Well, for the plot, I found Bergman a much more useful connection. The relationship between Unkie Gyory and his wife suggested numerous Liv Ullmann and Max Von Sydow relationships in Bergman -- tense, abused, exhausted, too-familiar, yet inextricably connected. (I don't believe "Harmonies" ever shows them in the same shot, by the way.) Even Jonas plays the next-generation counterpoint and intermediary that often pops up in Bergman's movies (as in "Saraband," for instance).
But beyond these generalities, there's a specific and pretty decent reference: Bergman's "Shame," in which a pacific village is ripped open by the intrusion of war -- for no reason, to no end, and with profound effects on the lead characters. Tanks and helicopters feel upsettingly foreign. (Even though "Harmonies" doesn't pretend to occur in any era but our own, it's carefully presented in an antiqued and rarified manner until the coming of the "war".) There are probably many similar movies in which Eden is rent by sin, but "Shame" for me remains the most upsetting and direct -- and this movie more than any other captured the same jarring sense of intrusion and catastrophe.
Also, on the same tack, I'm a bit surprised that no one (as far as I noticed) mentioned possible parallels to World War II: the sudden invasion of a foreign entity, the decimation of an innocent populace, the twisted "prince" (cf. Machiavelli, by the way) inciting destruction for its own sake (or perhaps some clandestine "final solution," perhaps having to do with the whale? suggests one townswoman), and numerous other scenes.
Lastly, oh doom-n-gloom wooers, there is a sneaky final hope in the film -- though it's sneaky because it comes at the very beginning: though the sun's light may be eclipsed from the earth, and though a shadow shall fall over life and love, there will (we must believe!) come the sun again. Janos goes out of his way to make this point. Gyorgi will come again, tomorrow, at the usual hour. The circus has left town and the square is bare and the whale is flopped out for everyone to see. In short, despite all predictions of the apocalypse, tomorrow is another day after all.
In some ways, "Harmonies" may be a far easier picture for some to understand once the thick smear of Artsiness (which, though very beautiful, could be pared a bit without any loss) is temporarily ignored for the sake of the traditional narrative in the film.
And now I've certainly gone on far longer than my promise to be brief...
(Also, I agree with those who think that the symbolism doesn't quite gel into a cohesive whole -- if we're trying to read a consistent symbolism structure under the plot, which maybe we just don't have to.)
But it may be of some help to those who haven't seen the film, or those who have and seek a structure on which to hang their analyses, to mention some apparent influences or connections.
Tarkovsky is an often-mentioned one. 'Tis slow, 'tis tracking shots, yes yes. But I wonder tho: is Tarkovsky brought up because of the starkness, the slowness, the Euroweirdness alone, or do Tarkovsky's ideas (whatever they may be; it's too much to go into here) also resonate? And if the influence is purely aesthetic, then what are the exciting ideas at work under the skin?
Well, for the plot, I found Bergman a much more useful connection. The relationship between Unkie Gyory and his wife suggested numerous Liv Ullmann and Max Von Sydow relationships in Bergman -- tense, abused, exhausted, too-familiar, yet inextricably connected. (I don't believe "Harmonies" ever shows them in the same shot, by the way.) Even Jonas plays the next-generation counterpoint and intermediary that often pops up in Bergman's movies (as in "Saraband," for instance).
But beyond these generalities, there's a specific and pretty decent reference: Bergman's "Shame," in which a pacific village is ripped open by the intrusion of war -- for no reason, to no end, and with profound effects on the lead characters. Tanks and helicopters feel upsettingly foreign. (Even though "Harmonies" doesn't pretend to occur in any era but our own, it's carefully presented in an antiqued and rarified manner until the coming of the "war".) There are probably many similar movies in which Eden is rent by sin, but "Shame" for me remains the most upsetting and direct -- and this movie more than any other captured the same jarring sense of intrusion and catastrophe.
Also, on the same tack, I'm a bit surprised that no one (as far as I noticed) mentioned possible parallels to World War II: the sudden invasion of a foreign entity, the decimation of an innocent populace, the twisted "prince" (cf. Machiavelli, by the way) inciting destruction for its own sake (or perhaps some clandestine "final solution," perhaps having to do with the whale? suggests one townswoman), and numerous other scenes.
Lastly, oh doom-n-gloom wooers, there is a sneaky final hope in the film -- though it's sneaky because it comes at the very beginning: though the sun's light may be eclipsed from the earth, and though a shadow shall fall over life and love, there will (we must believe!) come the sun again. Janos goes out of his way to make this point. Gyorgi will come again, tomorrow, at the usual hour. The circus has left town and the square is bare and the whale is flopped out for everyone to see. In short, despite all predictions of the apocalypse, tomorrow is another day after all.
In some ways, "Harmonies" may be a far easier picture for some to understand once the thick smear of Artsiness (which, though very beautiful, could be pared a bit without any loss) is temporarily ignored for the sake of the traditional narrative in the film.
And now I've certainly gone on far longer than my promise to be brief...