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By Eoin Robert ShortissSiberia is an experimental fiction film directed by Abel Ferrara, which is heavily reliant on bizarre and disconcerting visuals to make an impact on its audience. The effect of these visuals is aided by the excellent performance of the lead actor Willem Dafoe, who not only acts as the film’s protagonist Clint, but also as several other characters within the narrative as well. The film is intentionally abstract, potent and striking, with the high quality cinematography and framing you would expect to come from the work of an experienced director. I find myself wondering however, if the abstract nature of this film, which is its primary appeal, is actually its greatest downfall. Ferrara’s film walks a dangerous line between being unique and ingenious, and being incomprehensible and uninteresting. In general, each genre in mainstream cinema often tends to run more or less the same tried and tested formula for its structure. As a result, overexposure to a particular genre can make it predictable and uninteresting, which is one of the biggest disconnects a viewer can have from a film. What initially drew me to Siberia was the ‘experimental’ tagline it had under its name in the Cork International Film Festival programme. From my experience, experimental filmmaking promises to show something new to its audience, so that regardless of a viewer’s overall opinion of the film in question, you can expect that it should at least intrigue them on some level. And on that note, Siberia definitely delivers. The film revolves around a man named Clint, who runs a small bar in the snowy mountains of Siberia. Due to an inner conflict about his memories and his own morality, he decides to leave his establishment and go on a journey of self-discovery. As he navigates the landscape of Siberia, he simultaneously explores his own mind, taking the audience with him as he clashes with an unforgiving climate and his own painful memories. The manner in which this is done however, is what sets this film apart from mainstream cinema. Siberia’s audience is subjected to an incoherent montage, developed from a flurry of protagonist Clint’s experiences, beliefs and emotions, for the entirety of the film. This film has no comprehensive plot or structure for its audience to follow. That being said, I do not think that this is an oversight on Ferrara’s part. David Ehrlich’s review of the film on the website IndieWire, a digital media news site, wisely describes Siberia as “a baffling attempt to project the human subconscious on screen.” I believe he is certainly on the right track here. The only undoubtable aspect of this film is that what the viewer is seeing is largely, if not entirely, being influenced by the protagonist’s mind. Ferrara‘s film is not so much about Clint, as it is a portrayal of how uncertainty about a sense of self can cause turmoil in the human psyche. This manifests in repeated imagery of violence and gore, jump-cuts from moments of peace to moments of intense violence, or prolonged, uncomfortable portrayals of nudity and sex. The problem with Siberia however is that these shocking but attention-grabbing moments on screen are essentially all that triggers engagement with the film. Trying to unravel protagonist Clint’s past amidst the film’s visual chaos is a fool’s errand. Furthermore, the brief and short-lived components of this montage prevent the audience from learning enough about the characters in the film to become invested in any of them. The film’s only saving grace is its absurd visuals and pacing, but looking back, I genuinely do not believe even this is enough to redeem the film as a whole. There is definitely cinematic value in a film that makes its audience think and feel. Without providing the audience with a clear purpose for doing this however, the film is at risk of being unmotivated, and therefore unremarkable. Wendy Ide’s review on Screen Daily, website of British film magazine Screen International, touches on a very similar note, as she writes that “there should be a kernel of honesty and meaning in a film, or it just looks like the insta feed of a well-travelled psychopath.” Siberia tries something new, and overall I must say I found the film interesting. But with this, the ‘experimental’ absurdity of the film will only carry it so far, and when it is stripped away, it is hard to say what, if anything, remains of Siberia. Despite my own personal opinions of the film however, I believe Siberia was a great choice for this year’s Cork International Film Festival. Put bluntly, I do not feel this film fits within this year’s theme of ‘solidarity.’ In order to make any sort of case that it does portray solidarity, you would need a deep understanding of the film, which I do not believe is possible due to the film’s irregular structure. Nevertheless, it is Siberia’s peculiar approach to cinema that makes it suitable for a film festival. In the modern age, film has become integrated into almost every culture, and film festivals are a celebration of this. The Cork International Film Festival is a showcase of the huge cultural appreciation for film within Cork city alone, and it is a chance for this aspect of Irish culture to be enjoyed by many. Film festivals are a great opportunity to bring attention to the filmmaking abilities of a certain group, but they are also a chance to expose a particular film culture to a variety of filmmaking styles it would never see otherwise. This outside influence is crucial for filmmakers if they want to be able to grow and evolve, and it can only serve to compliment and add variety to their own culture’s experience in filmmaking. Siberia easily falls outside of anything that Irish filmmakers would naturally produce, which just makes it all the richer of a viewing experience. So while I do not reckon Siberia was the best film available at the film festival this year, I believe its true value is not in its overall quality. It is in how Irish filmmakers will be able to learn and take inspiration from this film for their own work for years to come. Works Cited: "65th Cork International Film Festival". Cork International Film Festival, 2020, https://corkfilmfest.org/the-65th-cork-film-festival-2020/. Accessed 16 Nov 2020. Ehrlich, David. "‘Siberia’ Review: Abel Ferrara Sends Willem Dafoe On A Spirit Quest To Nowhere". IndieWire, 2020, https://www.indiewire.com/2020/02/siberia-review-willem-dafoe-1202213095/. Accessed 16 Nov 2020. Ide, Wendy. "‘Siberia’: Berlin Review". Screen Daily, 2020, https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/siberia-berlin-review/5147556.article. Accessed 16 Nov 2020.
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