In anticipation of trying to see all the Oscar contenders and with plans to see Force Majuere this weekend (a Best Foreign Film contender and Sweden’s official entry) I recently watched Ida which is Poland’s submission for Best Foreign Film at the Oscars. Ida is definitely in the vein of european art films and feels like it could have been made by a Roman Polanski or Andrzej Wajda. The film is in black and white and features a old time 1.37:1 aspect ratio (which means it is 1.37 times as wide as it is tall on your screen. This ratio was the most used ratio in black and white films and it would usually fit well on an old tube TV without black bars on the top and bottom, but now with most films being much wider (standard HDTV widescreen is 1.77:1, and many movies are at 1.85 or even 2.39:1) it is noticeable with black bars on both sides instead. I really enjoyed this though because it reminded me of other great Eastern European Art films from the ’50s and ’60s. It made me think of other great Polish films like Knife in the Water and Ashes and Diamonds. It also made me think of Fritz Lang’s M, which had an even narrower aspect ratio at 1.19:1, which means it would have slight black bars on the sides when viewed even on an older TV. Rightly so film from this region (or at least the ones that are exported here) tend to focus on those country’s dealings with WWII. This one takes place in 1960 and is about a young Catholic nun about to take her vows but prior to this she is sent to see her aunt who she has never met before. Her aunt very nonchalantly reveals that the girl’s parents were Jewish and were killed during WWII. The movie then focuses on her aunt, who is a raging alcoholic, and her journey to uncover what happened to them exactly.
The young nun is played by Agata Trzebbuchowska. This was her first film and she was an absolute revelation. I really hope she keeps doing films and eventually is cast over here for things. She doesn’t have many lines, but her performances is all in the eyes, which are beyond sad. The reveal of her hair from the nun’s habit was a pretty great scene. This is a quiet and reserved movie which doesn’t really try to make a big sweeping statement about the treatment of Jews during WWII or about Polish identity after the war, but rather focuses in on the few people in the movie and how they deal with life. This tragedy that occurred is just part of their life now. There is no need for grand pronouncements. The director, Pawel Pawilkowski (The Last Resort and My Summer of Love), instead focuses in on the details of their search. Some major events are played out off screen even. The terrific focus in this movie is aided by the aforementioned black and white photography and narrow aspect ratio which makes you focus on the story and performances. This would be a deft hand for the local Polish audience even, but since he knew this would be viewed even more in other countries and with subtitles this is an even smarter choice. Even with all that considered the scenery it still beautiful and a real highlight of the film, but not the key one. The movie has won countless awards at festivals as early as late 2013 but since this movie wasn’t released in theaters here until May 2014 it will be eligible for an Oscar this go around.
I think there’s do doubt that this film will receive one of the nominations. Like I mentioned above I’ll be seeing Sweden’s entry this weekend. The only other entry I’ve seen was Venezuela’s Libertador at the Milwaukee Film Festival which was about the life of South American leader Simon Bolivar. I really liked that movie, but the buzz is that it won’t receive a nomination, though it has an outside shot. Other films that I need to see as they are likely to be nominated are Mommy from Canada, Two Days, One Night from Belgium, and Winter Sleep from Turkey. I know not everyone likes subtitled films, but when you have a gem like this you need to put those sort of prejudices aside and seek it out. Ida made over three and a half million dollars here in the US during it’s release so it’s a pretty big hit for such a movie. It’s on Netflix now, so I really suggest taking 88 minutes out of your life and watching it soon.
midwestmovieman 