Dead Europe (Krawitz, 2012): Curzon Renoir, 1pm & 8.45pm and all week 14th-20th December
A rare foray into current release territory for this well received Australian movie on a short release here.
Time Out review:
'At the launch of Time Out’s ‘100 Best Horror Movies’ project early
in 2012, we asked what the new wave of horror movies would look like,
the films that would shake this tired and tiresome genre out of its
torture porn and remake-induced torpor. Along with a handful of recent
releases – which include Ben Wheatley’s ‘Kill List’ – ‘Dead Europe’
provides the beginnings of an answer. These are horror movies which
aren’t quite horror movies, utilising the techniques and imagery of the
genre to present a subversive, sidelong view of real-world events and
situations.
In ‘Dead Europe’ the issue is exploitation, and how the echoes of Europe’s brutal past continue to shape our troubled present. Ewen Leslie
plays Isaac, an Australian photographer who heads to Greece – his
family’s birthplace – following the untimely death of his father,
Vasilly. There he becomes embroiled in family drama – his Greek
relatives all feel that Vasilly ran away from his responsibilities – but
also in something more sinister: an immigrant child (Kodi Smit McPhee)
appears and disappears, and the citizens of Vasilly’s home town seem to
be harbouring some dark secret. The hunt for the truth will take Isaac
to Paris and Budapest, encountering the victims and perpetrators of
different kinds of hate crimes, past and present.
‘Dead Europe’
packs a lot of story into 84 minutes, and the result can feel a little
busy, storming onward without sufficient attention to character or
tension. But it gets so much right, asking timely questions about the
way we treat one another and creating a vivid, intensely felt mood of
crumbling grandeur and lost chances. It’s beautifully photographed and
confidently performed, with a script steeped in mystery and
misdirection. And although it may lack a raw, confident force to make it
truly special, ‘Dead Europe’ completely nails its devastating,
unexpected ending.'
Tom Huddleston
Here is the trailer.
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