Movie No. 61 (2015): A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014)
Director: Roy Andersson
Cast: Holger Andersson, Nils Westblom
In Swedish, with English subtitles
The very first time I saw an event in a scene that appears out of place and illogical, I knew what it surreal. From then, I expected more absurdities. And, indeed, there were absurd and surreal scenes like the stopover of a contingent of medieval soldiers led by a thirsty king in a restaurant, a dance rehearsal that's a challenge to connect to other scenes,the three encounters with death, etc. All these were witnessed by a pair of uninteresting salesmen, both of retiring age, who, in practically all of their scenes, were peddling novelties that they would promote as party necessities. The whole of the film is, indeed, a disconnected reflection of human existence or about being human being. It's like a poetry whose meaning needs to be unearthed from the symbolism of its elements.
Director: Roy Andersson
Cast: Holger Andersson, Nils Westblom
In Swedish, with English subtitles
The very first time I saw an event in a scene that appears out of place and illogical, I knew what it surreal. From then, I expected more absurdities. And, indeed, there were absurd and surreal scenes like the stopover of a contingent of medieval soldiers led by a thirsty king in a restaurant, a dance rehearsal that's a challenge to connect to other scenes,the three encounters with death, etc. All these were witnessed by a pair of uninteresting salesmen, both of retiring age, who, in practically all of their scenes, were peddling novelties that they would promote as party necessities. The whole of the film is, indeed, a disconnected reflection of human existence or about being human being. It's like a poetry whose meaning needs to be unearthed from the symbolism of its elements.
If there's one word to describe the film, it's "inventive" or "original."
The film won the Golden Lion Award at the 2014 Venice Film Festival.
Rating: 3.5/4.0
Date seen: November 17, 2016
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