Essential Killing (Jerzy Skolimowski, 2010)

[MichaelB]

If Jerzy Skolimowski's current form is anything to go by, more filmmakers should be encouraged to take 17-year breaks. His silence was broken with Four Nights with Anna (2008), a slight but compelling riff on Krzysztof Kieślowski's A Short Film About Love that indicated an intriguing new direction in Skolimowski's work - that of creating psychologically complex protagonists who are so taciturn as to be virtually wordless. They have predecessors - Mike in Deep End and especially Nowak in Moonlighting spring to mind - but they're garrulous by comparison.

It's inaccurate to describe Vincent Gallo's virtuoso incarnation of an Afghan on the run in wintry Poland as "silent" or "mute" - although he never utters a single coherent word, he emits plenty of other noises, usually in reaction to extreme pain or hunger as he negotiates what to him is an utterly alien and wholly forbidding environment. The film has already run into flak in the US for its portrayal of recent alleged US military practices (waterboarding is hinted at, and the black hoods and orange jumpsuits are unmistakable) and its suggestion that we sympathise with "the enemy", but it rapidly becomes clear that Skolimowski is almost completely uninterested in the background politics, merely using the current Afghan situation as a plausible mechanism for dumping his protagonist in Poland (presumably en route to Guantanamo). It's not even clear whether Gallo's character is an active Taliban fighter, a sympathiser, or merely a poor dupe who when cornered in a cave with a rocket launcher conveniently to hand, decided that pre-emptive attack was better than near-certain death.

The bulk of its commendably brief 83-minute running time (a happy side-effect of nearly nonexistent dialogue - the only two important exchanges are near the beginning and end, and I doubt comprehension would make that much difference) is occupied with Gallo's character evading a full-blown military pursuit while trying to stay alive with no food, shelter or language in temperatures that apparently dipped to minus forty degrees during the shoot. Both Gallo and Skolimowski emphasise the physicality of the situation at every opportunity: the snow and ice are beautiful in long-shot, but potentially deadly up close, not least thanks to what they conceal. No spoilers, though - this is a film of constant surprises, including an encounter with a passing cyclist that's so audacious (though psychologically utterly convincing) that few filmmakers would have dared bring it off.

From the opening swoop over the Afghan landscape (actually Israel) to the enigmatic closing image of a bloodstained white horse, the film looks absolutely stunning. With Adam Sikora, Skolimowski has forged perhaps the most fruitful director-cinematographer partnership of his entire career. Sikora's subtle nocturnal lighting in Four Nights with Anna was one of that film's highlights (it's a crying shame that it was barely released internationally, as it really demanded the big screen), and he'd already shown a powerful affinity for stark forest settings in Piotr Dumała's The Forest (2009) and his own directorial debut Expelled (2010), which also features a near-silent protagonist. The last film in particular demonstrates that director and DOP must have been in uncanny creative sync - and Paweł Mykietyn's sparse score, hinting at but never quite evolving into a full-blown melody, is a perfect complement to the heightened natural sounds: the thrum of a helicopter, the buzz of a chainsaw, assorted animal and bird cries.

Naturally, it's been ignored by the Oscars, though I emerged from yesterday's press show harbouring a brief fantasy about Gallo's silence beating Colin Firth's stammer - only for it to be dashed minutes later by the nomination announcements. But this is grown-up cinema from a genuine master, and I can't wait to see it again.

[James]

I liked it a lot, but probably not the best intro to Skolimowski since it seemed to me like the movie belonged more to Gallo. That said, I was never bored, and I'll agree that it's a good looking film, even if it seems to become more about the primitive link between man and nature than it does about the Afghan war.

[MichaelB]

I liked it a lot, but probably not the best intro to Skolimowski since it seemed to me like the movie belonged more to Gallo.

Oh, it's definitely a Skolimowski film, no question - it only "belongs to Gallo" in the sense that he's in virtually every frame, just as Jeremy Irons was in Moonlighting. But they're both classic Skolimowski protagonists - he constantly returns to the theme of people forced to survive in unfamiliar environments, which is a subject close to his heart since he himself was effectively exiled from his native Poland in the late 1960s.

That said, I was never bored, and I'll agree that it's a good looking film, even if it seems to become more about the primitive link between man and nature than it does about the Afghan war.

I don't think it's about the Afghan war at all - the whole of the first 15 minutes or so seems to me to be a convenient way of engineering a narrative so that someone could plausibly be taken out of his natural environment (open spaces, extreme heat) and dropped in one that couldn't be more different (forest, extreme cold). You need those wisps of back-story to explain how he got there, but Skolimowski pretty much abandons the Afghan element from then on, aside from cryptic flashbacks that say more about the Gallo character's mental state than anything else: they certainly say little or nothing about the war.

[James]

Oh, it's definitely a Skolimowski film, no question - it only "belongs to Gallo" in the sense that he's in virtually every frame, just as Jeremy Irons was in Moonlighting. But they're both classic Skolimowski protagonists - he constantly returns to the theme of people forced to survive in unfamiliar environments, which is a subject close to his heart since he himself was effectively exiled from his native Poland in the late 1960s.

This is all new to me since I haven't seen anything else by Skowlimowski. I'll check out Moonlighting soon and let you know what I think. I'm glad you allude to the ambiguousness of Gallo's character in the film. I love films that let the images explain rather than relying solely on dialogue, and I think this movie did a pretty good job at that delving into his mental state, which transforms based on the terrain. Watching Gallo's facial expressions and sense of discovery as he roams around is my favorite thing about the movie.

[knives]

I've been holding back on commenting since I'm waiting for theaters to see this one if I can, but talking about about him general is too much to resist. Everything I've seen by him is absolutely golden even the entirely goofy(yet still very emotionally damaging)The Shout. That one and Moonlighting do seem to be the easiest of his films to find(The Lighthouse is available via Paramount too though). sadly my favorite, Deep End, isn't released yet, but BFI and Criterion are supposed to announce discs before the end of the year. Second Run has a couple on their docket too.
If what I've heard is correct none of them are as extreme a stylization as Essential Killing(though Moonlighting does come close to what I understand it to be), but still make good on what he's trying to do. He's really able to portray a variety of styles while keeping to a core look so there's a little bit for everyone. In a certain sense Moonlighting's one long shot with the smallest handful of interludes. Remember the searching scene in Touch of Evil that's split in two when Heston goes to the phone. Technically he's doing something different, but visually and more important emotionally he has that same sort of flowing tension and horror. I'm tempted to talk more, but that's what the actual Skolimowski thread is for and I'm sure I've said this all before.

[MichaelB]

I've been holding back on commenting since I'm waiting for theaters to see this one if I can,

See this on the big screen if at all possible. I was offered the choice between a very short-notice press screening or a timecoded DVD, and was only too happy to give up my lunch break.

Everything I've seen by him is absolutely golden even the entirely goofy(yet still very emotionally damaging)The Shout. That one and Moonlighting do seem to be the easiest of his films to find(The Lighthouse is available via Paramount too though). sadly my favorite, Deep End, isn't released yet, but BFI and Criterion are supposed to announce discs before the end of the year. Second Run has a couple on their docket too.

The BFI will be releasing Deep End in dual format well before the end of the year as part of the Flipside range, which means top-notch transfers and extras. As for the others, the first four Polish features are available in an English-subtitled box from Telewizja Kinopolska, but transfers and (especially) subtitles are pretty ropey. Second Run are preparing Barrier and Hands Up! and have guaranteed that their subtitles will be a vast improvement - I think they said that Skolimowski asked to approve them himself, as he's always been unhappy about the translation (carried out before he learned English himself), and was somewhat miffed that the Polish box didn't improve matters. Ferdydurke, the last film he made before the 17-year hiatus, is also out in Poland, with the original English soundtrack.

Thus far, Le Depart, The Adventures of Gerard, King Queen Knave and Success is the Best Revenge appear to be completely unavailable on DVD, though Skolimowski told me that he's not at all unhappy about this state of affairs with regard to the middle two.

If what I've heard is correct none of them are as extreme a stylization as Essential Killing(though Moonlighting does come close to what I understand it to be), but still make good on what he's trying to do.

Essential Killing is nowhere near as stylised as Barrier, Hands Up! or Ferdydurke. You can just about read it as a realistic drama, which certainly isn't true of the other three.

[knives]

If what I've heard is correct none of them are as extreme a stylization as Essential Killing(though Moonlighting does come close to what I understand it to be), but still make good on what he's trying to do.

Essential Killing is nowhere near as stylised as Barrier, Hands Up! or Ferdydurke. You can just about read it as a realistic drama, which certainly isn't true of the other three.

I should have said from what I've seen(he's one of those directors I respect enough to see on as large a screen as possible and never via computer). Thank you with the DVD help too by the way. When you say first four are you including any of the shorts or is Barrier actually part of that?
On a side note where is the best site to pick of Polish DVDs? In general I'd love to see more Eastern European cinema.

[davidprice]

Looks like EK should be getting its US and Canadian releases simultaneous to the UK:

W2's release, Essential Killing, is set to open on March 31 in Canada and the U.S. It also has deals with Image Entertainment for DVD, digital and VOD distribution in the U.S., and with E1 Entertainment for Canada.

@knives - merlin.pl and empik.pl are both good sites and sell/ship internationally.

[MichaelB]

Thank you with the DVD help too by the way. When you say first four are you including any of the shorts or is Barrier actually part of that?

My apologies - I completely missed this post when you made it!

The box set contains his first four features. Or, to be precise, Identification Marks: None, Walkover, Barrier and the re-edit of Hands Up! (i.e. with the lengthy Beirut/London prologue that Skolimowski added in 1981). Transfers range from very watchable (Walkover, Hands Up!) to frankly abysmal (Barrier), and Skolimowski himself has denounced the English subtitles.

Hopefully Second Run's promised editions of Barrier and Hands Up! will be a marked improvement on that score even if they're forced to use the same master - I think Skolimowski asked to approve the translation personally, which Second Run will obviously be going along with, not least because it's an obvious selling point.

On a side note where is the best site to pick of Polish DVDs? In general I'd love to see more Eastern European cinema.

Merlin is my regular supplier - you could run a tank over their packaging and the goods would barely suffer a scratch. I use Empik a lot when I'm actually in Poland, but have only ordered from them once - but I seem to remember that going OK.

[knives]

Thanks to you both on the order advice.

[zedz]

I take Michael's point about the Skolimowski set, but the films are all so good that unless Second Run (or some other bold company) gets around to improving all of them it's still well worth a purchase, dodgy subs and all. And if you do end up ordering anything from Poland, be sure to sample the amazing NINA / PWA sets - one of the greatest DVD series in the world at the moment. Lots more info in the dedicated label thread.

[MichaelB]

Oh, absolutely - the Skolimowski box is an essential purchase. Not least because there are no alternatives anywhere in the world, and Second Run hasn't even announced a firm release date yet (and in any case is only doing two of the films).

I own most of those Telewizja Kinopolska boxes, and for all my niggles about presentation (in most cases, sources seem to be old theatrical prints - the reel-change marks and associated damage at those points are a dead giveaway), they're an absolute treasure trove. Grzegorz Krolikiewicz was only a name to me until the six-film box (four features, two shorts) came out last autumn, but he's right up there with Zbigniew Rybczynski, Bogdan Dziworski (both his sometime cinematographers) and Wojciech Wiszniewski when it comes to right-out-on-a-limb 1970s Polish experimentalism.

And I obviously second your recommendation for PWA/NiNA releases - you can pick pretty much anything from the catalogue at random and you'll strike gold. I watched their latest documentary set on Wladyslaw Slesicki a month or so ago, and it was another blinder of a release - not merely revelatory in terms of the quality of the work, but also offering a virtually complete survey.

[davidprice]

FWIW I'm not sure if the Skolimowski set is still in print or not. Empik had it listed as "unavailable" and it is not listed on the TIM site (the distributor) however merlin and punkt44.pl still show it in stock. I have mine and I'd recommend grabbing it if interested as it's dirt cheap.
punkt44.pl often has better prices though I've never dealt with them. All three have English options (though not comprehensive).

[Zazou dans le Metro]

FWIW I'm not sure if the Skolimowski set is still in print or not. Empik had it listed as "unavailable" and it is not listed on the TIM site (the distributor) however merlin and punkt44.pl still show it in stock. I have mine and I'd recommend grabbing it if interested as it's dirt cheap.
punkt44.pl often has better prices though I've never dealt with them. All three have English options (though not comprehensive).

If it's any use I was in Katowice last week and they had copies on the shelf in Empik but annoyingly not one title from The PWA series. In fact the whole Kino Polski section has severely shrunk in the last few months. A sign of the times perhaps. If the Skolibox is out of print I guess this information is only of use if you're in Katowice which probably rules out just about everyone here.

[davidprice]

If it's any use I was in Katowice last week and they had copies on the shelf in Empik but annoyingly not one title from The PWA series. In fact the whole Kino Polski section has severely shrunk in the last few months. A sign of the times perhaps. If the Skolibox is out of print I guess this information is only of use if you're in Katowice which probably rules out just about everyone here.

I looked for the Skolibox at the main Empiks in Warsaw several months ago and they no longer had them and then found it on the shelf in Wałbrzych (which is pretty far from just about everywhere) so I'm not surprised that there are still some on the shelves in the other stores. I'd just say if someone really wants it, it might be smart to grab it while it's still available.
Yes, true, the Kino Polski sections seem to have shrunk in many of the Empik stores (though, surprisingly, I have found some good stuff in the Media Markt chain stores here).

[MichaelB]

If it's any use I was in Katowice last week and they had copies on the shelf in Empik but annoyingly not one title from The PWA series.

The PWA releases may well be on a different shelf altogether - in the Poznan branch of Empik last summer, they were in the documentary section, which was several shelving units away from the Polish cinema one.

In fact, now that I come to remember it, the box sets were also in a different part of the shop - unsurprisingly, the one devoted to box sets regardless of nationality.

[j99]

Looking forward to this, more for Gallo than the director; I've only seen The Shout and Moonlighting by him, both of which I liked, especially The Shout. The BBC broadcast it a few times, and I've still got an old VHS recording. Wouldn't mind seeing Four Nights With Anna either, since I liked A Short Film About Love. Pity the DVD is hard to come by. Any idea if the Picturehouse chain intend to give Essential Killing a wider release?

[MichaelB]

Essential Killing was the big winner at the Eagles - or Polish Oscars - last night, picking up Best Film, Director, Editing and Music.

I felt a little sorry for cinematographer Adam Sikora, as he nabbed two out of the three nominations in his category (his amazing black-and-white work for Piotr Dumała's The Forest was the other), but he lost to his only rival.

[Finch]

To anyone who's seen the film already, is Artificial Eye's UK trailer just plain desperate or does it give a fair idea of the film? The trailer makes it look like an action spectacle.

[Yojimbo]

I liked it a lot, but probably not the best intro to Skolimowski since it seemed to me like the movie belonged more to Gallo.

Oh, it's definitely a Skolimowski film, no question - it only "belongs to Gallo" in the sense that he's in virtually every frame, just as Jeremy Irons was in Moonlighting. But they're both classic Skolimowski protagonists - he constantly returns to the theme of people forced to survive in unfamiliar environments, which is a subject close to his heart since he himself was effectively exiled from his native Poland in the late 1960s.

That said, I was never bored, and I'll agree that it's a good looking film, even if it seems to become more about the primitive link between man and nature than it does about the Afghan war.

I don't think it's about the Afghan war at all - the whole of the first 15 minutes or so seems to me to be a convenient way of engineering a narrative so that someone could plausibly be taken out of his natural environment (open spaces, extreme heat) and dropped in one that couldn't be more different (forest, extreme cold). You need those wisps of back-story to explain how he got there, but Skolimowski pretty much abandons the Afghan element from then on, aside from cryptic flashbacks that say more about the Gallo character's mental state than anything else: they certainly say little or nothing about the war.

Massive disappointment for me, especially after loving 'Moonlighting'; I might have been too young to appreciate 'Deep End', and I kept missing 'The Shout', which I know I've always wanted to see, but this one left me cold. (no pun intended)
It seemed more of an exercise in pure cinema, or as pure as he could feasibly make it, rather than having anything interesting to say or tell.

[knives]

Without turning it into an essay what could Skolimowski say about anything?

[Nothing]

Nice trailer, none of that arty-farty shit.

[davidprice]

To anyone who's seen the film already, is Artificial Eye's UK trailer just plain desperate or does it give a fair idea of the film? The trailer makes it look like an action spectacle.

I think the trailer gives the impression a somewhat different film than it actually is. It starts out looking like an action spectacle but quickly turns and grows progressively more abstract, symbolic and existential -- or arty-farty if you prefer -- reflecting the seemingly paradoxical toughness and sensitivity of the boxer/poet director.
Also most of the overt action is shown in the trailer, which also reveals too much IMO. It might not get as many people to the cinema but I thought the version used in Norway seemed a closer representation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUeu5uAZ8nE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[MichaelB]

Skolimowski has never been keen on that arty-farty shit - when I first hosted a Q&A with him, he made it very clear that if I tried coming out with any overly analytical questions, he'd blank me.

[davidprice]

Skolimowski has never been keen on that arty-farty shit - when I first hosted a Q&A with him, he made it very clear that if I tried coming out with any overly analytical questions, he'd blank me.

He does seem very direct both as a personality and in his filmmaking - and I do think there is more intention behind the details than some may assume.

To be clear, I don't think of EK as arty-farty (or pretentious or too precious as that term implies to me) at all though I don't see it as a Bourne film either.

Wish I could be there for your Q&A tomorrow.