Director: Janez Burger
Cast: Leon Lucev, Ravil Sultanov, Paulina Rasanen, Rene Bazinet, Daniel Rovai,
75min Drama
Elements of Theatre of the Absurd and Magic Realism coalesce to startling effect in Janez Burger’s imagined silent wartime drama, appropriately entitled, SILENT SONATA.
In a farmstead somewhere in the Balkans – possibly Slovenia – some soldiers kill a woman (Marjuta Slamic), leaving her in the barren wasteland. Her husband (Leon Lucev), naturally devastated by the murder, is left to mourn with their children, no doubt epitomising the indomitable spirit of a people who have long endured the tragedy of conflict in this war-torn part of the World. Confusingly, a travelling circus then appears from nowhere, actually featuring members of the Cirque de Soleil, which seems appropriate but totally in keeping with tone of this inventive drama, with its echoes of Jodorowsky’ Santa Sangre. Very much an art house pleaser, it may not have mainstream appeal, but certainly stands out from the crowd with its striking set pieces and sheer ‘joie de vivre’. MT
SILENT SONATA IS ON GENERAL RELEASE FROM 9 MAY 2014 AT SELECTED CINEMAS