I read the synopsis and was flabbergasted. Despite the film's extremely poor reputation my curiosity got the best of me and I decided to watch for myself. I was immediately taken aback by choices that were made in the first few minutes before the opening credits even finished flashing on-screen: a poem credited to the movie's protagonist (?); a short scene with a dubious introductory voiceover that also shows us in crystal-clear terms the low production values on hand; a montage behind the opening credits of historic photos from the Holocaust (excuse me?) and like images recreated for this production. And the very next scene lobs exposition at us with all the gracefulness of a hippopotamus on roller skates.
I had low expectations for 'The singing forest' and still I am plainly stunned. Please understand, on a situational basis I can forgive low production values including a fuzzy image, and muddled audio that's overwhelmed by ambient noise. I can even forgive the reflection of inexperience and/or low skill in other elements if the effort otherwise reflects earnest care and hard work. Filmmakers work with what they have, and I've seen some amateur horror flicks that were truly outstanding despite their outward shortcomings. Such deficiencies do sometimes make a viewing experience difficult, however, and beyond this, of far, far more concern is the fundamental construction of this feature. Even if we graciously, magnanimously look past what feels like a dire lack of skill or experience, this is painfully rough from the very start, and watching is a continuous journey of profound skepticism and persistent exclamations, as a viewer, of "wait, what?"
The cast, in no small part consisting of crew members pulling double duty, illustrate significant general inability. They do try to act, bless them. Some performers, like Erin Leigh Price, arguably come off better than others, but that's only saying so much; the more a scene requires of an actor, the worse they come off. In fairness, it's not necessarily their fault, because filmmaker Jorge Ameer illustrates direction for which the words like "amateur," "novice," and "greenhorn" are kind; for as unsteady, uncertain, unconfident, blunt, and overall meager as Ameer's direction is, one would never guess that he had been working in the medium for several years by this point. Much the same verbiage can be applied to the bare-faced cinematography, the curt and often perplexing editing, the wildly imbalanced sound in which soundtrack selections are grating on the ears, and more.
But the script. Oh, the script. The picture at large is flummoxing, yet for all those ways in which the picture struggles, Ameer's writing above all is astonishing in its ineptitude and woeful lack of credibility. The chief terms to use for the screenplay are "egregiously flimsy," "grossly heavy-handed," "all-around dubious," and "simply terrible." This goes for the quizzical dialogue, the bizarre scene writing, the empty characterizations, absolutely for the peculiar narrative broadly, the odd sequencing, and for all achingly gauche instances of plot development. Inasmuch as anything about the craftsmanship here could be called "crucial," there is a crucial plot point to come at about the 48-minute mark that left me repeatedly screaming in disbelief - and considering how confounding the screenplay is at pretty much all times, that's saying a lot. No matter what aspect of the writing we look to the "substance" is excruciatingly thin; it's one matter to read a plot synopsis, but the reality of how the story presents to us is, incredibly, much worse. Strictly speaking there are dramatic beats that, approached judiciously, should have emotional impact, but under any of the described circumstances, that just wasn't going to happen.
I can't believe I'm saying this, but it remains true that I've seen worse titles. I've seen the bottom of the barrel, and this isn't it. 'The singing forest' is so deeply questionable that it borders on problematic, but there is a faint sliver of sincerity that grounds the production despite all its many, many, breathtaking flaws and weaknesses. Still, for the level on which this operates, that doesn't get us very far. I'm gobsmacked; I know inevitably that I'm going to discuss this flick with other people, and when I do I don't know how I can meaningfully communicate just how bewildering it is. Save for the utmost curiosity of the avid cinephile I can't fathom any reason why another person might watch this, so the word "recommendation" never enters into the equation. All I can say is that if you do come across 'The singing forest,' and you're open to all the wide possibilities of cinema no matter how far-fetched or faulty, strap in and prepare as much as you can for one of the most baffling viewing experiences you're ever going to have.
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