Viewed at the Cannes Festival de Film 2010
I've rated this film higher than most IMDb posters because, for me, it's a family drama at heart and much less a horror film. Going into We Are What We Are with that in mind will, I think, give you a better viewing experience.
This is a tight knit family bound by the usual familial ties and one not so usual one: they are cannibals. When the father dies the dynamics are turned on their head. Least of which is that the survivors have to learn how to hunt or die!
There is violence and blood, of course, and also some wonderful black humour, but all this places WAWWA only in the realm of horrible, as in horrible things going on, but nor does the film dwell on this. Instead, we get the focus on changing familial dynamics, as the two brothers, sister and mother strive to keep the unit intact and also adapt to the changed circumstances that also force them into new roles: in the past, the father was the hunter- provider.
Taken as a story of sudden trauma and the effect it can have on those closest, WAWWA is a close up and personal study. Yes, the characters are cold blooded killers and monsters, but as the title says, they are what they are and so do what they do. It's not personal, it's not gratuitous, merely necessary.
Some posters have criticised the film's technical merits. I'd argue the hand-held camera and grungy look is perfect. These aren't Hollywood actors and if you see WAWWA then you can imagine just what the Hollywood version would be like, and how it would throw out all the weight of the original to focus on the blood and guts.
A South American Let The Right One In? Si.
I've rated this film higher than most IMDb posters because, for me, it's a family drama at heart and much less a horror film. Going into We Are What We Are with that in mind will, I think, give you a better viewing experience.
This is a tight knit family bound by the usual familial ties and one not so usual one: they are cannibals. When the father dies the dynamics are turned on their head. Least of which is that the survivors have to learn how to hunt or die!
There is violence and blood, of course, and also some wonderful black humour, but all this places WAWWA only in the realm of horrible, as in horrible things going on, but nor does the film dwell on this. Instead, we get the focus on changing familial dynamics, as the two brothers, sister and mother strive to keep the unit intact and also adapt to the changed circumstances that also force them into new roles: in the past, the father was the hunter- provider.
Taken as a story of sudden trauma and the effect it can have on those closest, WAWWA is a close up and personal study. Yes, the characters are cold blooded killers and monsters, but as the title says, they are what they are and so do what they do. It's not personal, it's not gratuitous, merely necessary.
Some posters have criticised the film's technical merits. I'd argue the hand-held camera and grungy look is perfect. These aren't Hollywood actors and if you see WAWWA then you can imagine just what the Hollywood version would be like, and how it would throw out all the weight of the original to focus on the blood and guts.
A South American Let The Right One In? Si.