Oscar Winner Hungarian cinema (Best foreign film) – Son of Saul
" I happened to make a wish list of foreign films especially the Oscar short lists. I did see the Indian representations & was curious of knowing who actually won the foreign film category. I came to know about this brilliant film maker (László Nemes) and his work based on holocaust called as Son of Saul. This film is Hungarian and my review is based on sub titles.
So what's new on this especially after Schindler's list? Well, that's the whole point you can't be new about history bit you may have a different treatment to the context all together. This is what probably makes Son of Saul a great work. The film is a periodical experience of a Hungarian 'Sonderkommando' ( a prisoner lead in a gas chamber camp who is forced to work as a lead and do job of cleaning dead bodies) & his life in hell for one and half day. The 70mm camera puts a shallow field of vision like a war camera. His daily job in the camp was to gather dead bodies often from his own people dispose them & report back collections of private materials that the prisoners brought. Saul (his name) mainly worked near the gas chambers & waited for people to die inside so that he could go inside and clean. He eventually takes a moral responsibility to be a logical father to a dead teenage boy and provide him a proper Rabbi (Jewish) burial. The whole film focuses on his burial. The treatment of dead body's burial as a central theme especially to show human plight is not new to literature or films. Bengali literature has 'Abhagir Swargo' (Heaven for the unfortunate) and there may be more which i dnt know of. But what made Saul's short cinematic live in hell worth a compliment was the sheer depth of vision that the director offers you. You get to be like a buddy for Saul & think why is he doing this? Well we will never know why Saul actually thought a dead body as his own son. You are rational in a rational world. You walk when you have a ground. Saul had none for him so we can't judge a fair mind from him. What I also loved about this cinema is that music is almost muted. You have to hear the background score with great concentration. I simply loved this as a muted music may refer a past grace or a distant memory. Maybe Saul's head was banging with his past or maybe the lost echo of his happy days. Watch this film but in case you have limited view of world war and holocaust – then consider doing some internet research before watching this film. This film is not suitable to be watched with kids (naked dead bodies) so consider that as well. What happens to Saul or the plot is not relevant for my review – what still hold true is what we have learnt from the holocaust ?
" I happened to make a wish list of foreign films especially the Oscar short lists. I did see the Indian representations & was curious of knowing who actually won the foreign film category. I came to know about this brilliant film maker (László Nemes) and his work based on holocaust called as Son of Saul. This film is Hungarian and my review is based on sub titles.
So what's new on this especially after Schindler's list? Well, that's the whole point you can't be new about history bit you may have a different treatment to the context all together. This is what probably makes Son of Saul a great work. The film is a periodical experience of a Hungarian 'Sonderkommando' ( a prisoner lead in a gas chamber camp who is forced to work as a lead and do job of cleaning dead bodies) & his life in hell for one and half day. The 70mm camera puts a shallow field of vision like a war camera. His daily job in the camp was to gather dead bodies often from his own people dispose them & report back collections of private materials that the prisoners brought. Saul (his name) mainly worked near the gas chambers & waited for people to die inside so that he could go inside and clean. He eventually takes a moral responsibility to be a logical father to a dead teenage boy and provide him a proper Rabbi (Jewish) burial. The whole film focuses on his burial. The treatment of dead body's burial as a central theme especially to show human plight is not new to literature or films. Bengali literature has 'Abhagir Swargo' (Heaven for the unfortunate) and there may be more which i dnt know of. But what made Saul's short cinematic live in hell worth a compliment was the sheer depth of vision that the director offers you. You get to be like a buddy for Saul & think why is he doing this? Well we will never know why Saul actually thought a dead body as his own son. You are rational in a rational world. You walk when you have a ground. Saul had none for him so we can't judge a fair mind from him. What I also loved about this cinema is that music is almost muted. You have to hear the background score with great concentration. I simply loved this as a muted music may refer a past grace or a distant memory. Maybe Saul's head was banging with his past or maybe the lost echo of his happy days. Watch this film but in case you have limited view of world war and holocaust – then consider doing some internet research before watching this film. This film is not suitable to be watched with kids (naked dead bodies) so consider that as well. What happens to Saul or the plot is not relevant for my review – what still hold true is what we have learnt from the holocaust ?