العدو

Watching this film, knowing little to nothing of what would find me, turned out one of the most pleasant film experiences in months. And perhaps it might be necessary to explain 'pleasant' here: the word does not necessarily mean that one is comforted, has fun in the usual meaning. Film-wise it means, at its best, to be challenged. Challenged, here, meant to be glued to the screen. It's a little difficult to write a review on it. I've read through some of the others and saw that almost all reviewers had problems. Some were trying to solve the riddle (the more confidence displayed, the less successful they were). Perhaps it's best to paraphrase what one of the reviewers wrote: try and go through this film as if through a dream, through reality enhanced. Enhanced reality feels very much like the opposite, and this is the feel of the film. From the choice of colours to acting to ambivalence about identity, the result is as hypnotic as it's unsettling. The very simple story is told very plainly, but underlying is the intricacy of a nightmare. The discomfort feels like a single, stretched emotion. Something about this film works wonderfully, and as with the best of literature that narrates between the lines I wasn't always able to tell why (that went the same way for me with the spider-theme: it worked before I understood). The music is an inseparable part of the film. The film wouldn't have been the same with another soundtrack, a large part of what works in it isn't merely carried by it, but co-created. Pleasant also, albeit in a more common sense, to be finally able after quite some time to give a best vote for an achieved fusion of everything that makes a film for the viewer, unsettling, challenging and deeply rewarding. 10 out of 10 Theraphosae.