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Aftersun (2022)
A Hearty Bittersweet Story of A Father and Daughter
I don't even know where to start.
Watched Aftersun with my dad.
I would only see him during holidays while I was growing up because my parents are divorced. Did not know the movie was about a similar scenario, and did not know it was filmed in Turkey- where I'm from. It's also a weird coincidence that dad and I listened to Losing My Religion only a couple hours before we started watching the movie.
The facts that Calum is someone who can't fully witness her daughter growing up, who doesn't earn lots of money (and thus, probably isn't 'successful' in life), and who's divorced, merging with the scene where Sophie talks about having an amazing day and then coming home to feel tired and somehow down, gave dad and I the impression that Calum couldn't even experience the joy of spending time with his daughter, because he knows at the end of the day, Sophie will go back to living with her mom, left me extremely heartbroken.
Throughout the movie, I couldn't help but feel nostalgic, melancholic, and deeply bittersweet. However, after the ending, I was left confused, because even though while we were watching the movie dad told me Calum was probably depressed, for the whole duration of the movie, I was expecting to better understand what was up with Calum; the flashing nightclub scenes were what was bugging me and making me think there was a hint in them regarding Calum's state, I kept trying to connect that with all the other dots, and just couldn't. It was only after I read some reviews and trivia about the movie that I finally could realize those were linking to the connection between Sophia and Calum, and Sophia understanding him at a deeper level years after the holiday.
I think it's also funny how Sophie, as a kid, can't tell what's going on with Colum, and how I couldn't tell he was having suicidal thoughts until dad told me- even though I'm 21. I guess dads will always be dads, and daughters will always be daughters.
Apart from all the emotions I've experienced, I think it's definitely worth mentioning the spectacular acting of Paul Mescal (Calum) and Frankie Corio (Sophie) that makes the movie way deeper, and the amazingly done cinematography and art directory, which results in each individual scene being elevated from just being components of the movie, to scenes to stare at as pieces of art.
I can tell this movie will have a place in my heart for a long time, and in my opinion, even if there are no similarities you can empathize with, Aftersun definitely is one of the greatest movies of the last couple of years in its genre.
Vortex (2021)
Not your average Gaspar Noe movie
Watched Vortex at the very first night it was screening in Paris. To be fair, I don't understand French and there were no subtitles, but it made me feel vulnerable and bitter even in that circumstance.
The movie doesn't contain scenes of any kind of abuse as other Gaspar Noe movies, but still, it leaves you looking blank at the screen. Before going in to the movie theater I knew what the movie was about and I've seen the trailer as well; however, Noe still managed to impress me and others. When the movie ended everyone at the theater was extremely quite, and their faces looked like the movie touched their souls somehow; and I think that's because every single scene is so real. There are no surreal settings or extreme characters that you probably wouldn't meet throughout your life, every scene feels like you could have been there.
Also, the split screen (in my opinion) explains how even though you meet people and spend some, or most of your life with them, at the end, you're all alone. I feel like this is a common theme Noe enjoys reminding his viewers, and to me, this technique did the job quite right. I especially enjoyed watching Françoise Lebrun's facial expression and hand while the screen was splitting: I don't know whether this was done on purpose, but it made me think that she was anxious because she was realizing how they're drawn apart, and tried to prevent it until the very last moment.
Structure-wise, it's nothing like other movies of Gaspar Noe's- I guess it's more of an experimental one; so you might be disappointed if you expect the crazy visuals, the scenes built around 'dirty realism', or that underground feeling in general. But feeling-wise, Gaspar Noe once again managed to draw the audience into their own inner worlds and leave them alone with their staggering emotions. I definitely think this movie is more than another product of the culture industry that you consume mindlessly and instinctively, and rather an actual piece of art that makes you feel emotions. Can't wait to see the English version!