Genius Loci (2020) User Reviews

Confusing but beautiful fever dream.

[XavierVA · 7/10 · 13 February 2021]

A young black woman in France explores the city. This is as much sense as I could make of the plot, which seems to mix hallucinations, urban dereliction and possibly drugs, mental illness and/or shamanism.

So it's not the plot that kept my attention but rather the fantastic art, which elegantly wears its artistic influences : cubism, Miro, with maybe a hint of Munch. But Genius Loci is not merely an homage to modern art. It has found its own artistic style in the manner it blends all of that with more personal traits. The art keeps branching, evolving, and circling back during the 15 minutes of the movie.

If only the message could have been as interesting as the delivery, Genius Loci would have been an even more memorable short.

Dancing Watercolour Daydream

[Neon_Gold · 6/10 · 28 March 2021]

I feel like this story has cooked in this persons mind for a long time. I know that it has come from a deep place in there brain.

The slight issue with something like that is that it can be confusing for someone who hasn't lived with it for all that time like you have.

I feel like I got parts of it especially at the start but then it sort of lost me.

I will say this, it is gorgeous. It's all these watercolours dancing together on the screen. It's very carefully crafted.

I had no idea what was going on, but I loved it

[isaacsundaralingam · 7/10 · 17 April 2021]

Genius Loci is a surrealist animation short film that follows a very hallucinogenic style of storytelling, making it more of an experiential watch than an enjoyable one. And while there isn't a "plot" as such that drives the film, it still conveys the emotions of instability with as much precision and grandeur as it could.

Not sure if I'll ever recommend it to anyone, but I'm certainly glad I watched it.

a mystifying version of France

[lee_eisenberg · 6/10 · 4 January 2023]

Adrien Merigeau's Academy Award-nominated "Genius Loci" is an example of how animation doesn't have to be fancy. The most important thing is the story. In this case, a young woman named Reine has a metaphysical adventure one night.

The short doesn't have a definite plot, and nothing really gets identified about Reine other than her name. It's all about her surreal adventure. I didn't expect any sort of masterpiece; the short was pretty much what I anticipated. It's nothing great, nothing terrible. Probably worth seeing once, or if you want to see every Academy Award-nominated short (it's available online).

We Are All Unique

[boblipton · 4/10 · 11 April 2021]

Reine is a young woman who lives with an older one and a aby. One night, she spills some water, and things get very metaphysical, as she wanders the city, interacting vaguely with other loners.

There's a dream logic to this, in its modern sense of no logic whatsoever; the story, if that's the right word for it, starts in one direction, changes abruptly, and then changes again. While the artwork is primtiive and compelling, the sense of narrative chaos is thoroughly offputting. If anything can happen, then what can you do about it, and why should you be surprised or interested, particularly when it may change into something else entirely within the next five seconds.... and does.

Well, part of it is the spectacle of the matter, the pure visual delight. But spectacle such as this serves merely to distract us from the reality that the film maker has nothing to say.

An achievement of the highest magnitude

[film-scholar · 10/10 · 16 April 2021]

Over its 16 minute runtime, Genius Loci packs more ideas and innovation than the majority of feature-length films.

Like any excellent art, it cannot possible be fully understood with a single viewing. Every time I watch it I see heaps of new things I didn't notice on previous viewings, including the narrative.

The animation style is deeply informed by early 20th century modern painting, constantly imaginative, and breathtaking. The sound design is refreshing and a departure from the traditional (and more agreeable) orchestral accompaniment.

Rarely do people have the imagination required to create a work like this, let alone pull it off. It is so sophisticated and original that it makes the majority of short-films look tepid and rudimentary in comparison. I cannot wait to see what Mérigeau makes next.

Sorry. Didn't Resonate With Me

[Hitchcoc · 5/10 · 9 April 2021]

I must be getting too old. The musings of this guy and what goes on just seems to go on without an editorial direction. I guess it's just what kids in their situation may dream and so avoid the world they were born into. I was not captivated by the amateurish presentation.