EMA
All fired up...
OUT 17 APRIL
T
he thrill of seeing a restrained director loosen
the constraints is writ large in Pablo Larraìn’s
eighth film. If the Chilean auteur’s Jackie
(2016) was a poised portrait of a woman’s
inner life, his follow-up emerges as its punk alter ego,
brimming with unfettered dance moves and fiery
displays of defiance.simmers behind her dare of a stare...
If Larraìn’s liberties with plot mean
Ema’s appeal rests largely on its lead,
her androgyne charisma bears the
weight. A near-comic sex montage
proves more awkward, as does the
resolution: in a film so resistant to
convention, it’s hard to accept easy
closure. But it’s equally hard not to
submit to Ema’s emancipated
eruptions of hyper-expressive style,
from the phosphorescent gleam of
DoP Sergio Armstrong’s images to
Nicolas Jaar’s lusty electro-score and
the heady vigour of the dance set-
pieces. When Ema’s all-female posse
hit the streets for a realism-be-
damned dance-off, the righteous rush
of exuberance is like a green light to the
senses. Kevin HarleyA flawed but fervent hymn to its
titular rebel, it starts with traffic lights
ablaze and recognises no red lights
from there.
Mariana Di Girolamo is electrifying
as Ema, a reggaeton dancer trading acid
barbs with her husband (an atypically
cold Gael García Bernal) over the
abandonment of their adopted son Polo
to an orphanage. Polo was a tricky kid- he inherited Ema’s pyromania - but
backstory and regular story are not
Larraìn’s focus. Instead, he surrenders
structure to the deep, complex human
impulses driving Ema from shagging to
flame-throwing, footwork to fighting,
demonisation to liberation. Meanwhile,
a subconscious plot to retrieve Polo
CERTIFICATE DIRECTORPabloLarraìn
STARRINGMarianaDiGirolamoGaelGarcía
BernalPaolaGianniniGianninaFru
ero
SantiagoCabreraSCREENPLAYGuillermo
CalderónAlejandroMorenoDISTRIBUTOR
MubiRUNNINGTIME minsTHE VERDICT
Larraìn mounts a dazzling, daring
character piece, lit up like a firework
display by Di Girolamo.IT MUST
BE HEAVENOUT 3 APRIL
“He’s a Palestinian filmmaker but
he makes funny films.” That’s
how writer/director/star Elia
Suleiman is introduced (by Gael
García Bernal!) in this offbeat
odyssey. The ‘plot’ involves
Suleiman finding surreal parallels
worldwide to his homeland’s
struggle as he struggles to secure
funding for his latest project.
Really, though, that’s an excuse
for Suleiman to deliver his
distinctive, deadpan comedy.
Somewhere between Jacques Tati
and Wes Anderson, Suleiman’s
style combines precise
compositions, rich sound design
and his own wry, wordless
presence. Simon KinnearTHE LADY IN
THE PORTRAITOUT 3 APRIL
Not to be confused with Céline
Sciamma’s recent masterpiece,
this French/Chinese production
arrives on UK shores three years
after its overseas bow. Charles de
Meaux’s glacial drama centres on
Fan Bingbing’s Empress Ulanara,
who commissions a portrait from
Melvil Poupaud’s Jesuit painter in
the hope of winning over her
distant husband. Inevitably,
there’s a connection, though the
leading pair’s chemistry sputters
rather than sizzles. Impressive
production design brings China’s
Imperial Court to life, but this
Lady never comes close to
catching fire. Chris SchillingThiswasprobablytheir
mostembarrassing
superglueaccident
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GAMESRADARCOM/TOTALFILM APRIL 2020 | TOTAL FILM