November 24, 2022
Director: Davy Chou
Submission of CAMBODIA (Languages: French, Korean, English)
Freddie Benoit was a Korean who was adopted by a French family when she was still a baby. Now a young woman of 25, Freddie decided to fly to Seoul, Korea when her trip to Japan did not push through. While in Seoul, Freddie tried to look for her birth parents from the adoption agency who facilitated it. She was met with varied reactions -- one parent was over-apologetic, while the other one did not seem to care to see her.
As played by Park Ji-min, Freddie was not exactly a likable person. Her headstrong, rude attitude is not easy to watch or sympathize with. She had some relationships along the way, strangest being with a middle-aged French arms dealer. The belated reunion scene of Freddie and her birth mother was very unsatisfactory. The whole final scene of older Freddie at a remote hotel was a puzzling conclusion. 4/10
Director: Alice Diop
Submission of FRANCE (Language: French)
In line with the new book she was writing adapting the classic story of Medea, novelist Rama (Kayije Kagame) went on a trip to Saint Omer witness the trial of Laurence Coly (Kayije Kagame), a young woman who was accused of killing her 15-month old baby girl Elise.
Laurence's story was only told within the confines of the courtroom, via the testimonies of the suspect and witnesses, the questions of the judge (Valérie Dréville) and the emotionally-charged summation of her defense lawyer (Aurélia Petit).
This film is a reflective study about motherhood. Very very slow burn. The flashbacks were about Rama and her strained relationship with her own mother. Meanwhile, it would seem that Laurence also had a strained relationship with her mother. 7/10
Director: Chie Hayakawa
Submission of JAPAN (Languages: Japanese, Tagalog)
There were three main characters around which the story revolved. Michi (Chieko Baisho) was a 78-year old lady who lived alone and had just been retired from her job. Himoru Okabe (Hayato Isomura) was a young man actively recruiting for Plan 75 until he saw his own uncle (Taka Takao) applying. Maria (Stefanie Arianne) was a young Filipina mother working among elders in Japan to raise money for her daughter's heart surgery.
Plan 75 is about a fictional new law passed in Japan allowing senior citizens aged 75 and above to plan their own euthanized death. With a morbid topic like this, it was no surprise that the pace of the film was glacially slow, the lighting dim and the mood morosely sad. However, there will be an emotional connection to the lonely characters involved, and it will make you reflect on your own life and mortality. 6/10
Director: Alejandro Loayza Grisi
Submission of BOLIVIA (Languages: Quechua, Spanish)
Elderly llama farmer Virginio (Jose Calcina) and his wife Sisa (Luisa Quispe) persist with their daily routines despite the shortage of water following a year-long drought in their remote village in the Andes. One day, their grandson, city boy Clever (Santos Choque) visited to convince them to go back with him to live in the city. However, Virgilio was being a curmudgeon about any of Clever's suggestions.
There was not really much of a story, but it was a rare chance to see a slice of what life was in that part of the world, their daily routines, religion, culture and family. The actors who played the elderly couple were possibly non-professional actors, but their bond as husband and wife is convincing and admirable, and connected emotionally with the audience. The llamas were adorable. The scene with the condor was haunting. 7/10
Director: Marie Kreutzer
Submission by AUSTRIA (Languages: German, French, English, Hungarian)
With all her ceremonial duties, Empress Elisabeth (Vicky Krieps) was unhappy as the wife of Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria (Florian Teichtmeister). Her constraints were represented by the tightness of the corsets she needs to wear, and she rebelled against them. She only confided with her trusted friend Countess Marie Festetics (Katharina Lorenz), and enjoyed activities with her cousin King Ludwig II of Bavaria (Manuel Rubey).
Director Marie Kreutzer used a lot of innovative techniques to set this apart from the usual period biopic. There was technical surprises in the cinematography and musical score. There were inserted black-and-white scenes from the newly-invented motion picture camera by Louie Le Prince (Finnegan Oldfield). There were a couple of scenes featuring modern pop songs ("Help Me Make It Through the Night," "As Tears Go By"). 7/10
Director: Jerzy Skolimowski
Submission by POLAND (Languages: Polish, Italian, English, French)
Eo is a gray donkey who was born in a circus and was in an act with his master Kassandra (Sandra Drzymalska). One day, the circus was closed down because of bankruptcy and public protests of animal cruelty. From there, Eo was moved from place to place -- from a horse stable, to a donkey farm for special children, to the woods, to a soccer game, to an animal hospital, on a delivery truck, and in the estate of a mansion in Italy.
Since the main protagonist is a donkey, Eo is silent. There won't be any Disney-like voice-overs here. It would depend on the director's creativity with his camera angles and musical score to evoke the proper emotion for each story. The violence can be very shocking and jarring. The ending set in Italy was disappointing despite the presence of Isabelle Huppert, because it was strange and had nothing to do with Eo at all. 5/10.
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