Trans-Europ-Express is very typical of the French new wave, infused with self-conscious visuals, and constantly using reflexive techniques, making it one of the most meta-cinematic productions there is. The narrative consists of a film within a film, featuring the story of a screen writer played by the director of Trans-Europ-Express: Alain Robbe-Grillet. The film then follows the narrative of the prospective film the screen writer creates, which tells the story of Elias, who transports drugs from Paris to Antwert via train, hence the title of the film. As a result, audiences follow two simultanous narratives. At one point these separate narratives are actually combined when Elias and the screen writer are within the same scene, alluding to the fabricated reality of the film itself, by breaking the membrane between the fictional world of the film, and reality in which the film is created.
The male gaze is explored a lot within Trans-Europ-Express, and interestingly it is this that ultimately leads Elias to his death. The film features sadistic scenes, in which Elais becomes sexually involved with Eva, tying her with rope and chains. Whilst this content does not immediately point in the direction of high cinema, it's within these scenes that the most alluring camera work is used, making it both difficult and fascinating to watch.
Trans-Europ-Express uses components of various genres, and highlights the manipulation of narratives through the medium of film. Essentially it reminds viewers of the fictitious nature of cinema and critiques the production of film itself.
7.6/10
After watching In Bloom, a fellow cinema-goer a few rows back said one word which I believe sums up the film adequately, and that word was: 'bleak'. Despite it's bleakness, the potent verisimilitude of the Georgian film takes audiences out of the recognisable western reality, and into a culture inscribed with poverty and familarised violence. Although the events coincide with the war in Georgia, the main events cover the narrative of two girls: Natia and Eka, as they attempt to defy the nonsensical customs within society.
In the beginning of the film Natia is presented with a gun, creating a constant tension in the narrative, as the audience wonder when and how it will be used. So when the gun is never fired, it seems that writer and director Nana Ekvtimishvili uses the prop to suggest that violence is commonplace in Georgian society, and so whilst producing cinematic tension, it is not such an spectacle in the realm of the film.
Ultimately this is a feminist film; the girls try to deviate from the path of patriarchy and lead their own lives, only to result in many complications. It is often the case in cinema that women are given lead roles in which their primary concerns involve men, and it is certainly encouraging to witness two young girls who deviate from this.
In Bloom is filled with hope in a society which fundamentally contains none, resulting in many emotional ups and downs. Its drama is created by a desire to resist the rigidity of the society in which Natia and Eka live, and when they ultimately fail, it is somewhat disheartening, yet there is still an aspect of promise left, as even in the film's denouement it is clear that Natia and Eka have not given up hope.
8.2/10
