constantimarina Reviews

Apostasy (2017)

A fascinating insight into an insular world

[16 March 2024]

JWs knocking at doors and then more recently peddling their leaflets on the street in every corner of the world, distinctive in their smart clothing, interest me in their choice to adhere to a very strict, insular religion, which is in so many ways at odds with and on the fringes of mainstream Christianity.

This film created an eerie and bleak picture of the worship and home life of JWs. The colour scheme and sparse decor were excellently crafted. The story itself was a fascinating exploration of faith and the authority structure in place in what appears to be a very unforgiving and rigid system. Many issues were touched on: the refusal of blood, non-celebration of birthdays, rejection of the cross as a symbol, strict attendance at meetings, "taking the trolley out" and the obligation/time commitment to do mission work, and strict moral code. Many aspects of their theological doctrine were also touched upon.

Of course, the central plot was the process of "disfellowshipping" a member who had strayed from the path. JWs often argue that this only happens when a serious sin has been committed for which the person does not repent. The film portrayed the process as wholly lacking in humanity and leading to the total and complete breakdown of the disfellowshipped's family. The friction between the JWs' teaching and demands, versus the desired and natural closeness by mother and daughters, was striking.

Even though it wasn't the main plot of the film, I found myself disturbed by the "courting" relationship between the young girl and the elder, who seemed alarmingly old for her. Working as a gardener and window cleaner respectively, the plan was that they would marry and be "looked after by the Organisation until the New System". I find resonance with my own faith, where I have recently witnessed the urgent "hunt" for a wife by someone before taking up a position in the church.

Overall, much food for thought. The film could have been a lot longer and shown us many more things! I hope the director makes more content dealing with his experiences in this religion.

Samba (2014)

The inexorable will to survive

[10/10 · 9 November 2022]

Samba is an exceptional portrait of the experiences of a Senegalese immigrant in Paris. Having lived under the radar for ten years, Samba finds himself arrested and ordered to leave the country, which brings him into the orbit of Alice, a fragile and exhausted woman who has experienced severe burnout thanks to a gruelling and brutal corporate career and is donating time on her road to recovery to assist immigrant clients with their attempts to remain in France.

From there on, it seems that Samba's time is up. Ever determined to remain in France, he is thwarted time and again by his lack of legal paperwork and the difficulty of avoiding the police.

But he is persistent in his will to survive. Despite every attempt to strip him of his dignity, he refuses to give up. His spirit is bruised but not crushed.

There is tragedy in how Samba is battered by the harsh world he faces as an undocumented immigrant. But in human connection he also experiences moments of joy, laughter and love too.

In counterpoint to his experiences are Alice's, whose own idea of a struggle has been to work herself into a state of paralysis and depression in the corporate world: their worlds could not be further apart. Yet, there is common ground and common humanity to be found between them.

An exceptional film about the dogged determination of a man dealt a truly tough hand.

Tokyo Girl (2016–2017)

Utterly absorbing - a must-watch for all women

[10/10 · 6 November 2022]

Tokyo Girl blindsided me with its profound exploration of the competing pressures placed upon women in post-1980s Japan.

The life of Aya, a small-town girl, is charted from her teens to her early 40s. Aya decides early on that she needs to swap what she finds to be a stifling provincial environment for the bright lights of Tokyo.

As Aya moves from one neighbourhood of Tokyo to the next in the years that follow, her motivations, dreams and desires evolve. Two main questions emerge concerning her survival: her professional life and her love life.

We witness her commence her professional career, initially naive but eventually recognising her worth and value, as well as taking pride in who she is as a woman in the world of work. Aya's story raises questions about the struggles overcome by previous generations of women to participate in work, and how far professional accomplishments can fulfil women.

From group dates to registering with a marriage consultancy, Aya seeks a partner, variably disappointed, used, forced to compromise and discarded by the men she meets. Tokyo Girl asks what makes a woman happy and whether a woman can be fulfilled without children, exploring the "violent societal pressure" placed on women to do it all and have it all: to excel in their professional life whilst also securing the perfect husband and being the perfect wife and mother.

It is a story of our often thwarted attempts to build and live our dreams and the eternal, futile hunt for better, bigger, more successful: in life and in love.

Ultimately, there is no utopian option. The folly of her youth gives way to acceptance of reality and the need to accept life lived "as an extra", rather than in the starring role we imagined. Aya reminds us of the many roads not taken in all our lives, and the need to find "small happiness" wherever we can.

The Remains of the Day (1993)

A profound lesson on life and the living of it

[10/10 · 5 November 2022]

The Remains of the Day is cunningly disguised as a period drama but is in fact a profound tragedy, as well as an excursion into a dark chapter in British history.

We join Mr Stevens, a lifelong butler at Darlington Hall, just as the tradition of "service" in large country houses is fading fast in the wake of World War Two.

Mr Stevens reflects on his years of duty to Lord Darlington, a well-meaning but naive and foolish man who in an attempt to broker friendship with Germany after their humiliation in World War One, finds himself becoming sympathetic to their insidious anti-Semitism and a seemingly unwitting pawn in their sinister machinations.

Nazi sympathisers were a real feature of the English aristocracy on the eve of World War Two.

Through his memories of his dutiful and selfless (and often senseless) service at the house during these years, we are educated in lessons about work, sacrifice, loyalty, missed opportunities, misplaced trust, disappointment, regret and how we choose to spend our lives, and on whom.

Some of this from the script, but more from what is only half-said, or goes unsaid.

It is a reminder of how a moment's hesitation, a seemingly minor error of judgement, a missed chance in an everyday human relationship, and often blind stubbornness, can transform our destinies.

We all live with these shadows in our lives. At each juncture, we turn away from a thousand paths, a thousand opportunities. That is what this film is about.

There is a deep sadness in this and it will resonate with you for a long time.

The acting talent is also exceptional, particularly James Fox, who is perfectly cast as Lord Darlington.

Truly a life-enhancing film.

The Professor and the Madman (2019)

Exceptional and very moving - a truly standout film

[10/10 · 5 November 2022]

This film is an exceptionally wonderful retelling of the true story of how the Oxford English Dictionary came into existence. It charts the extraordinary efforts of James Murray, a self-taught genius and polyglot who secured the role heading up the project (much to the chagrin of a bunch of fusty, snobbish Oxford academics who had tried and failed to get it going themselves), having proposed the novel idea of seeking contributions from the general public.

As he embarks upon what seems to be a behemoth, perhaps impossible, task of charting the entire history of all words in the ever-evolving English language, he begins to receive contributions from a Dr Minor, a gifted but deeply troubled man who has been convicted of murder and is being held at Broadmoor mental asylum in Berkshire. A very unique and moving friendship develops between these two brilliant men and we follow both the progress of the dictionary and the variable fate of Dr Minor, who languishes in the darkness of an abhorrent criminal justice system.

This film is exceptional and I cannot recommend it highly enough for a truly remarkable expedition into language, scholarship, friendship, mental illness, redemption and the complexity and multi-faceted nature of humans.

It is also peppered with a stellar cast, including much English acting talent (Laurence Fox plays a very sour nemesis to Dr Murray) and also Lars Brygmann, normally seen on Danish television.