#Cinequest Film Festival day three
Film #5: “For Some Inexplicable Reason” uses the well trodden story of a thirty year old male, Aron, who has been drifting through life and loses his girlfriend. Yet this film from Hungary manages to make the story feel fresh. This was mostly due to the imaginative ways used to show the tension between Aron’s desire to move on from the old relationship while still longing for his old girlfriend. It was a delightful 90 minutes. A strong 4 of 5 stars.
Film #6: “Three Windows and a Hanging” is from, and set in, Kosovo and explores the aftermath of the rape of four women in a small village by enemy soldiers. The cinematography is magnificent. It was submitted for an Oscar and deservedly so. The behavior of most of the men in the film is shameful on multiple levels. First is the fact that several of them knew the rapes were taking place yet hid and did nothing. Second, after the crime they pretend it never happened. Third, once one brave woman tells the world what happened (without naming the other three women) all of the men in the town spurn her for “bringing shame on the town”. This film deserves an encore screening on the last day of the festival. I’m giving it a rating of 4 of 5 stars rather than 5 of 5 because certain aspects such as the behavior of the husband of the primary female protagonist wasn’t sufficiently developed.
Film #7: “The Hamsters” explores the secrets of a dysfunctional family. The husband is 50 years old and has lost his job and is desperately seeking a new one yet hasn’t told his wife or family. Which doesn’t fool the wife since creditors are now calling the home about unpaid debts. The wife is afraid her youthful beauty is fading and longs for an affair with her personal trainer at the gym. Yet as soon as the trainer makes a pass she chickens out. The son will soon be a father and after telling his family in a moment of mutual stress says “just kidding”. The daughter is regularly skipping school and is bi-sexual. I enjoyed it but rate it only 3 of 5 stars.