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First, the Recap:
Are we not creatures of routine? Day in and day out, we go about the obligations and random commitments that come about almost on automatic pilot, often not even giving any real thought as to what we are or are not accomplishing. Rather, jobs are completed, ideally some sense of satisfaction is gained from our endeavors, we return to our homes, go about the nightly routines, and start it all over again the next day. And the next day. And the day after that. Yet, we seem not to grow tired of this monotony, knowing that as long as we have our place to sleep, food to eat, and income to sustain us, all should be as it should.
With the echoes of quiet waves lapping against its hull, we deem it is such for one man (Vincenzo Sama) as he strikes out into the dusk on his small, ocean-worn fishing boat, traveling to what we can only surmise is his favorite spot to engage in his daily (or nightly) routine of catching his desired quarry. Whether this is for his own personal survival, the benefit of an employer, or even both, we cannot ascertain. He goes about his objective with calmly purposeful intensity. Then, a series of unexpected events unfolds that seek to undermine his momentum as night closes in, his frustrations mounting, even if the boiling point remains contained within. Yet, it is ultimately in total darkness that newfound revelation about life is found.
Next, my Mind:
This critic has oft mentioned during many a previous review how much appreciation I have for the true art form that isn’t just indie film, but more specifically short film. That ability to present a narrative which engages the viewer, holds attention, and actually sustains a meaningful level of thematic impact in such abbreviated runtime constantly impresses me. Here is no exception thanks to an overall briskly paced, 9-minute, slow-burn, dramatic effort from writer/director/cinematographer/editor Fabrizio Condino and writer Oliviero Del Papa, screening at the 2019 High Coast Film Festival sponsored by and/or in association with Illambra, Kramfors Kommun, Film Vasternorrland, Europeiska Unionen, Region Vasternorrland, Lansstyrelsen Vasternorrland, and NBV. I say quickly moving in that the film only lasts 9 minutes, but then slow burn in that the actual story takes a moment to really get its legs under it, since we’re talking a one-man show with very little “action” as it were. Yet, watching this lone fisherman’s plight he encounters one evening becomes a real study and moral lesson in our humanity and how much we take for granted everything around us because we’re simply too desensitized or otherwise caught up in our own selves to take a moment and value what’s around us.
What’s more, I felt the story also makes a point to remind us frankly just how small we are in the grander scheme of a miraculous world and universe we find ourselves blessed (or we sure should discern this fact) to be a part of and how much more the things we see as annoying “problems” aren’t really such, a facet explored through this film via an experience that shows when a “problem” becomes the catalyst for change in heart and attitude (even if by conjecture). We take this in through a wonderfully uncomplicated yet effective visual approach, first only witnessing shoreline lights and the small set of lights our intrepid man utilizes to attract his intended prey, then suddenly thrust at one point into total blackness, the film then requiring us as the viewer to take in the unfolding occurrences aurally, which allows the greater thematic emphases as interpreted above come through with larger overall weight, creating a sense of both hesitant fear, yet undeniable awe in picturing what it would be like to literally be in this fisherman’s shoes in those moments. Even after said circumstances are over and daylight arrives once more, we can clearly see how the encounter has affected him even as he heads for shore, all being well with his boat and otherwise after most assuredly believing he could have perhaps even met his fate on the water that night.
Again being the only primary individual in play throughout the film, Sama brings what I also so much adore about indie cinema, a realistic, believable, grounded performance to the table in his role as the man, who goes out onto the water during this random twilight hour to ply his given trade. He’s collected, quiet, lost in his own thoughts even as he motors away from the beauty-filled coastline and out into the vastness of the sea, perhaps not too far, but enough to have a sense of isolation. Yet, as his evening turns into night and his activities are bearing fruit, unforeseen happenings begin to transpire that end up plunging him into utter darkness. But, it is within this Stygian blackness that he has a revelatory rendezvous that will forever alter his view of life and the regard and respect for it he comes away with. With no real dialogue present, Sama is therefore in need to use facial expression and body language as the means to communicate his character’s journey, and he does so with understated ease and relatable emotional execution, making us feel much more than his tranquil demeanor might suggest on the outside. Sama delivers this wonderfully throughout.
In total, with its simplicity firmly in hand and Lee Rosevere‘s atmospheric music score highlighting the film’s final moments and end credits to stirring effect, “Notturno (Night)” is another winner for this year’s High Coast Film Festival, bringing us all along on a peaceful, momentarily (though gently) unsettling, then inwardly redeeming voyage as seen through one man’s eyes when being reminded, as mentioned above, how so much we worry over is nothing compared to the grander scope of life on this Earth, coming away with that newly acquired value and meaning from it all to take into our heart, mind, and soul, hopefully applying it as we move forward.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
