I have been so fascinated by this film that I have taken the time to register on imdb only in order to recommend it. I wouldn't go so far to call this a "review."
I'm a middle-aged professor and a fan of surrealism, who discovered Zenith upon the recommendation of one of my students, who wrote a paper on it, when we were discussing conspiracy theories -fact, fiction, deliberate manipulation and interpretation- in relation to psychology, as well as culture and society at large.
I truly enjoyed this film. I had to watch it twice to pick up on all its references and themes, since there are so many here, from the obvious, like the MIlgram experiment, over the lesser known, like Aleister Crowley or Edward Bernays, to some obscure surrealist literary and cinematic quotes, which I won't reveal, as they would spoil some of the fun of discovering this film for yourself. Zenith is like an onion, where each layer that peels off will reveal something new. It deconstructs language, the genre, even the process of filmmaking, with the fast-forward/rewinds, cut-tos, etc. It's playful and irreverent, mixing the fake and the real, the truth with lies, and the comic with the tragic.
You, the viewer, have to interpret the full meaning of the narrative. This intent is obvious, and not only because of the ending. It's difficult to go more in depth here without revealing too much. The storytelling method is surrealist -think David Lynch, Bunuel or Jodorowsky. Nothing is what it seems and everything has a double meaning. There is no reassuring closure in the end, no key to find one right answer for everyone, but that's what makes it so interesting.
To me, this is a memorable film, well worth the effort. If you enjoy complex and ambiguous narratives, you will enjoy this multi-layered film. Now, let me watch it a third time and see what I have missed.
I'm a middle-aged professor and a fan of surrealism, who discovered Zenith upon the recommendation of one of my students, who wrote a paper on it, when we were discussing conspiracy theories -fact, fiction, deliberate manipulation and interpretation- in relation to psychology, as well as culture and society at large.
I truly enjoyed this film. I had to watch it twice to pick up on all its references and themes, since there are so many here, from the obvious, like the MIlgram experiment, over the lesser known, like Aleister Crowley or Edward Bernays, to some obscure surrealist literary and cinematic quotes, which I won't reveal, as they would spoil some of the fun of discovering this film for yourself. Zenith is like an onion, where each layer that peels off will reveal something new. It deconstructs language, the genre, even the process of filmmaking, with the fast-forward/rewinds, cut-tos, etc. It's playful and irreverent, mixing the fake and the real, the truth with lies, and the comic with the tragic.
You, the viewer, have to interpret the full meaning of the narrative. This intent is obvious, and not only because of the ending. It's difficult to go more in depth here without revealing too much. The storytelling method is surrealist -think David Lynch, Bunuel or Jodorowsky. Nothing is what it seems and everything has a double meaning. There is no reassuring closure in the end, no key to find one right answer for everyone, but that's what makes it so interesting.
To me, this is a memorable film, well worth the effort. If you enjoy complex and ambiguous narratives, you will enjoy this multi-layered film. Now, let me watch it a third time and see what I have missed.