English tea time in Transylvania: SCARBOROUGH

Scarborough, on the Northeastern shore of England, 
is no longer a popular holiday destination. 

The English town is nowadays 
a monument to lost enamel.

 The majestic and abandoned rooms 
of the Grand Hotel 
overlooking the North Sea 
testify of it.

At its Reception Desk, first Liz, 
and then Aiden 
receive the keys of their rooms. 

They declare to be alone. 

Yet they find themselves, 
during a trip in the elevator, 
each one clinging to a younger lover. 

Over the course of a weekend, 

two love stories intersect and merge, forbidden and marked, 

mirroring one another.

The couples game is balanced.

Both Liz(Jodhi May) 
and Aiden( Edward Hogg) 
are teachers.

They struggle with their intense and problematic loves for sixteen-year-old Daz (Jordan Bolger)

 and Beth(Jessica Barden), 
two uninhibited,feisty teens,

who are still filled with the adolescent exuberance 

of those who have yet to be 

disappointed or betrayed.

Overflowing with vital ingenuity, 

the two youngsters represent 
a romantic and sensual ideal 

that begs to be lived.

Yet at the same time 

it requires to be hidden 
from puritan eyes.

As there is not only age 
to complicate things. 

But also the fact 
that every couple 

is composed of 
a professor and his/her student.

In the first part of the film 
the two stories are echoeing, 

between the Victorian bare walls of the hotel. 

They repeat the same fragments of dialogue

 between men and women. 

The result 
is an intriguing reflection 
on gender dynamics.

Here the words 
leave viewers 
free to appreciate 
the enormous differences

 radiated on tone, 
gestures, 
bodies. 

In addition, of course, 
to the balance of POWER 
within the relationships.

Six years ago the Director Barnaby Southcombe started out as a film director 
with the noir "I, Anna", 
presented at the Berlinale.

"This is a hot topic 
but someone has to talk about it -
 said Barnaby Southcombe 
when I discussed with him 
last week 
at the 2019 Transylvania International Film Festival. -

 For me it is very important to focus 
on the fact that love 
is a totally subjective concept 
and always the target of criticism 
from the outside, 
especially if a relationship is 
socially unacceptable "

" But the relationships shown in the film 
are clearly sexual 
and show adults struggling with partners
 who are just of age", said I.

"There is a difference for me 
between pedophilia 
and consensual relationship, 

but in a relationship between student and teacher there is a line that should not be crossed. 

I was interested in going beyond it 
and focusing on the emotions 
of this relationship: 
what is important to those involved? 

How is this relationship analyzed 
after so many years have passed? 

Presenting two couples struggling 
with the same dynamics 
allowed me 
to analyze this topic 
in two different moments".

-"It is interesting to me that in the film 
there are the younger partners 
who are pushing 
to keep the relationship going. 
At one point, 
the young boy is even ready 
to take responsibility 
for having a child 
with his forty-year-old teacher.", I notified.

..."At 16 you think you are 
in full control 
of your thoughts and your body, 
but in the end you understand 
that it is not really so. 

I liked the ideea of ​​exploring the experience of a FORBIDDEN LOVE 
and how the young protagonists 
totally trust their own judgment. 
A temporary thing."

-"I noticed that the camera focuses more on women: 
the female student in love with her teacher, 
and the woman teacher loved by her student."

" I'm more interested in telling the story 
of a woman, 
we already have too many 
male references 
in our cinema. 

As a director, however, 
I want to continue to explore 
the fragility of human beings, 
and tell them in the moment 
of full awareness: 
they know very well 
that they are doing something wrong 
but they cannot stop. 

Some have a facade that seems stronger 
than others, 

but the truth is 
that we are all
 fragile 

in the end".

"Scarborough", 

without ever straying too far 
from its hotel, 

stages an unforgiveable,
and unforgettable 
love war, 

full of ups and downs,

with excquisite style 
and abrasive passion.

By Giulia Ghica Dobre

June 13th 2019

The Underground Youth - Half Poison / Half God

Pears are not apples

He had written and directed epochals such as: Once Upon a Time in Anatolia 
or Winter Sleep. 

Now Nuri Bilge Ceylan's The Wild Pear Tree 

paints a fascinating portrait 

of the struggle and resentment of Turkish youth, 

resulting from lack of job opportunities 
and crushing under the weight 

of family debts.

It’s a coming of age movie, of someone who has already came of age. It charts the growing pains of an artist, and his search for belonging in a world that feels too small for him.

Set in a small Turkish village, 
The Wild Pear Tree follows a young man 

who returns to his hometown 

after graduating.
He wants to be a writer. 

He has Already finished his manuscript,
and now 

he attempts to get it published. 
He looks for local sponsors 

and scrapes money of his own,
 when he can’t find any. 
But his father’s debts 

soon catch up with him. 

Co-written & directed by Nuri Bilge Ceylan, the film is slow. 
Patient.

 Methodical in its approach, 
as expected.

The entire film is an exercise in showing rather than telling. Told through the eyes of Sinan, his writer’s imagination leads to dream sequences of heart-stopping proportions, perfectly balancing the real with the fantastical.   It fits so harmoniously with the film as a whole as it never once disrupts the flow of the narrative.

 But the plot is a tad too drawn out. 

Ceylan’s direction presents a certain level of comfort. 

His sketching of the mundanities of everyday life 

remain as captivating as always, 

but they are also overly stretched. 

The story ruminates on love, 
fate, 
morality, 
religion, 
unemployment & abandonment 

through the eyes of our protagonist, 

who often comes across as arrogant, 

insolent & condescending.

Whereas it is a proper reflection of young adults 

who reject the wisdom & advice of previous generations, 
consider themselves morally superior to others, 

and think they know how the world works, 

until life knocks some sense into them. 

However, 
it is the father-son relationship 

that the film bases its narrative on. 

This aspect is finely executed, 

keeping our interest alive 
until the end 

with their love-hate dynamic. 

The static camerawork allows room for more thoughts 

and follows our protagonist at all times.

Yes its 188 minutes runtime is excessive, 

and its severity is felt
 sooner or later. 

Editing is a mixed bag too, 

for the jump cuts are jarring 

while several extended segments 
end abruptly. 

All the actors are committed to their roles, 

play their part responsibly 
& are thoroughly convincing. 

Even the supporting characters with limited screen time 

exhibit sufficient depth, 

thanks to excellent writing 
& lifelike characterisation. 

Ceylan provides ample space 
for primary characters to breathe 

yet their arcs appear stifled 
for the most part 

before coming full circle 
in the end. 

On an overall scale, 
The Wild Pear Tree provides an interesting glimpse into the life of modern Turkey, 

and makes for an absorbing character study 
of a young man 

who finds himself being dragged towards a destiny 

he cannot embrace.

While there are moments 

that present the esteemed Turkish auteur 

in control of his craft, 

there are also times 

when he slips up 

and allows few segments 
to either go on for too long 

or cuts before they have run their course. 

 Everything about this film works out to create something unbearably real, hard to watch but harder to look away. It’s a honest portrayal of the artist and their place in the world, in the worlds we create and the worlds we exist in. The Wild Pear Tree is a must-see for everyone, but particularly for artists, young and old. From its message to its crafting, you’ll walk out feeling understood, not alone and maybe even inspired.

Giulia Dobre 

interview with a (transylvanian) vampire

[mixcloud https://www.mixcloud.com/giuliadobre/the-begginning-of-a-beautiful-friendship/ width=100% height=400 light=1]

Serotonine toi-meme

Et in arcadia ego

(Literatura sau arta de a privi realitatea in fata)

4 ani dupa marele scandal – si succes- cu “Soumission”, ‘Serotonine” revine la esenta lui Michel Houellebecq. 

Anume la un concentrat de ironie depresiva intr-o Franta in criza.

Persoanele mai in varsta au avut poate ragazul de a se fi informat asupra acestui cuvant bizar care da tiltul ultimului roman al lui M.H. 

Ceilalti stiau probabil deja, din practica joggingului, din consumul drogurilor, sau din ambele, ca serotonina mai este numita si “ proteina fericirii”.

Comentatorii au subliniat pana acum cu culori fluorescente legaturile romanului cu actualitatea imediata. 

In absenta oricarei burka, ei au apropiat romanul de evenimentele cu gilets jaunes. 

Sa fi virat Houellebecq in orientarile sale politice? Se vor fi intrebat comentatorii, pana sa inteleaga, poate, ca defapt problema statea in lectura lor mot-a-mot a romanului“Soumission” …

“Serotonine” are bunul simt de a nu mai adauga nimic senzational poemului epic houellebecquian. Temele sale uzuale se regasesc aici intocmai, desfasurate intr-un soi de road-trip restrans existential la dimensiunile Normandiei.

Barbatul se numeste de aceasta data Florent-Claude Labrouste, si este inginer agronom- precum Houellebecq. 

Pentru a-i vindeca depresia, doctorul ii prescrie un nou medicament, Captorixul, care are inconvenientul de a lasa impotent.

Traiesti, da, dar nu-ti mai doresti nimic: o dilema eminamente moderna.

Si totusi. Florent-Claude nu este pregatit sa renunte.

Drept care va da un tur pentru a-i revedea pe putinii oameni pe care i-a iubit: o fosta amanta, un prieten de la Agronomie, sau iubirea lui cea mare. Va traversa deci o Franta a satelor minuscule, in mod cert mai exotica decat insulele thailandeze.

Bineanteles ca exista aici un anumit comentariu politic, in acest portret al Frantei rurale in criza.

Dar povestea e terminata, gata: cargourile aduc deja lapte din Argentina, gainile sunt torturate in minuscule habitacluri, iar agricultorii francezi, ultimi descendenti ai nobililor din Evul Mediu, se sinucid o zi in doua.

Deci e de dreapta sau de stanga?

Reactionar sau revolutionar?

Cu toate acestea, repertoriul scriitorului de fraze laconice despre atractia minusculelor pizdute thailandeze, despre nudistii olandezi sau extazul din supermarket, e cam rasuflat.

Ramane amuzant-pentru ca ramane adevarat.

Insa “Serotonine” este, poate, romanul de dupa umor.

Este mai degraba romanul trecerii cartre moarte.

Iar Houellebecq stie sa moara incetul cu incetul.

Lentoarea, deriva, poezia lui “as fi preferat sa nu”, dau romanului sarm si spleen. 

Finalul urca puternic, calare pe caii albi ai unui elan liric care, precum adesea la Houellebecq, ezita intre grandilocvent si trivial.

Autorul este aici din nou impartit intre trivialitatea sexualitatii umane, si un ideal romantic foarte pur, rar si frumos.

Dar prostititutia, precum turismul, si-au pierdut atractivitatea in ochii lui, si naratorul nu se mai excita deloc.

Iar poezia nu-si mai face aparitia decat rapid si rar, o data ce povestirea s-a cam terminat. 

Ar mai trebui vorbit si despre ciudatul episod pedofil din inima cartii. 

Fara a dezvalui prea mult, sa spunem ca naratorul nu isi extrage de acolo nici-o placere sexuala, ci se concentreaza mai degraba pe aspectele tehnice.

Noi, ca cititori, trebuie sa ne intrebam la ce anume serveste acea scena. 

La ce altceva decat la o clarificare radicala a functiei scriitorului.

“Nu va voi denunta!”, urla personajul de mai multe ori.

A vedea, a descrie cu exactitate abjectiile si gratia fara morala a unui sex de fetita, fara emotie, fara a denunta, fara a face pe justitiarul: 

iata un program literar foarte clar.

Bineanteles ca personajul une carti nu trebuie confundat cu autorul sau.

Si totusi, “Serotonine” este in acelasi timp povestea unui om care scrie o carte, o metafora a muncii scriitoricesti. 

Finalul ne indica ideea de marturie in sens crestin.

Este vorba despre povestea unui martir, care se cere privita atent de catre cititor.

Imposibilei comuniuni umane, 

autorul o propune pe aceea, provizorie si fragila, 

a cartii ca mijloc de a privi lumea.

 Si de a dispera impreuna.

Giulia Ghica Dobre