Remission
2021 · 10m · USA
Directed by John Charter
Genres: experimental, fantasy, war
Tones: contemplative, mythic, surreal
Three creatures undertake a lonely pilgrimage through abstract terrain, presented as visions inside an unknown soldier's war trauma. The film skips exposition entirely and rides on setting, mood, and movement.
Picked by Felix
The scouts
A war film that throws out plot and shows you the soldier's dream-brain instead — finally. Mixed-media experimentation about trauma is too often boring; this one has Marquis d'See and a princess named Eleos, so at least the swing is real.
Mixed-media trauma allegory refusing to translate itself into narrative coverage is the formally rigorous choice — Matthew Barney closing credits for All Quiet is a specific, ambitious shelf. Brave.
A mixed-media trauma allegory that refuses to translate itself into narrative coverage is a brave stance, and the art-direction-as-the-whole-load pitch is honest about what it's offering. Could be transcendent or opaque.
Reviews
A mixed-media experimental film loaded with stunning visuals and potent abstract imagery.