Originally posted on letterboxd on October 6th, 2023
i first discovered the existence of this film by looking at a wikipedia list of films that were recorded entirely with a phone, i saw this mentioned on there and i was really intrigued mostly because of its title and the very few screenshots that i saw online
the graininess of all the footage reminded me of something that you'd see on liveleak, and it really just... captivated me because of how.. eerie it feels?? There is little to no music in this film, mostly just ambience and chatter from people on the street. The only times music plays is one scene where the camera is recording some construction workers, after which it cuts to a shot of a dilapidated house.... this time, in good camera quality! I assume its a flashback of the protag's experience in afghanistan, as those traumatizing memories are still clear in his head.
Near the end of the film, he drives around and records some really serene experiences, rainy skies, fish at an aquarium, treetops, and candles flickering on his desk. Those scenes really contrast the intense vibes of the film, but then it cuts to the ending which was really ominous and just... raw yk?? I dont know how much i can describe it without having to put a spoiler tag on this review but like. Yea. By the way the plot synopsis described on vimeo is just. Really funny:
[...]"But so much for the story. What you will actually see is something very different, as you're inside the head (or rather the phone) of a man whose mind is fractured from his experiences in war.
Will he be able to conclude his tragic mission? Will it set his mind at ease? And does this film connect in any way with this synopsis?"
this is only the end part of it, the synopsis itself was quite long and detailed and then it immediately suggests that it might not be at all truthful... fitting since you really are just watching normal daily life events from the eyes of a traumatized war veteran.