Review of Hole In My Heart, A

Introduction

Right, let`s get this bit out of the way first. Step away from this review right now if you are easily offended, as this film will definitely offend, no question.

Eric (perhaps the only real stereotype in the film) is a lonely, black-wearing, depressed goth teenager. He lives in a nasty flat with his loser dad Rickard. Rickard`s job is to be a writer/director/cameraman and star in his own little amateur adult film business, shot entirely on location in his flat. Eric locks himself away in his bedroom in order to avoid this scene.

Rickard has a new film to shoot with Geko and Tess (Sanna Bråding), who seems to have dreamed of this lifestlye since she was in her teens. She is a wannabe starlet who will do anything for fame (or so it would seem).

Right let`s look at the technical bits of the film first.

Video

A 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer, shot in a very in your face, reality TV style. Brand names are blurred out, as are various other things that appear up on screen. And Moodysson likes to jump cut around scenes, flitting from the scenes in the flat to extreme close ups of intimate surgery, and scenes of dolls in uncompromising positions.

Masses of hand held camera work here, with scenes edited to within an inch of their life as the film jumps about from one disjointed scene to another. And despite how you may have heard it described, it`s not erotic, just graphic to the point of biological.

Audio

A DD5.1 soundtrack, which is as in your ears as the picture is in your face. Masses of white noise interrupt at various points, sometimes for a microsecond, sometimes for much longer. And it jumps around just like the picture, sometimes with happy, clappy sub-Eurovision Europap for a soundtrack, and sometimes getting all classical (Bach`s St Matthew Passion).

But I`m sure Bach would never have imagined that this sacred work would have been used during a scene in which one character vomits into the mouth of another.

Features

A selection of features.

The most interesting is probably "A hole in my second heart", which is a kind of "making of" feature, but rather unconventional. It`s about 20 minutes of footage which seems to show the lead actors and director in conversation/argument/heated debate about the film, its point, its message, its potential lack of script or direction. They seem to be questioning just what the hell they are doing there (and with good reason). It`s hard to make out whether this is real or staged, but it`s interesting to watch.

The Lukas Moodysson Masterclass is an interview with the director which you`ll want to watch in order to try and learn more about the film to help you understand it.

The Director`s statement comprises of 8 pages of text where Moodysson defends the film and attacks a few critics.

A trailer wraps things up.

Conclusion

In case you jumped straight here, I`ll repeat my warning to step away from this review right now if you are easily offended, as this film will definitely offend, no question.

This is a different take on the Big Brother voyeurism/wannabe culture that the director feels is sweeping the West. There might be a serious point here, but it`s lost in the endless scenes which just seem to be there because the director is sticking 2 fingers up at the audience. "Ha, look at me, look at what I can do. I`ve made a film that features characters vomiting in each other`s mouths. Here are some scenes of intimate surgery. Have I shocked you now?"

The film jumps around relentlessly, with some scenes and some sounds almost like something you might expect at some torture camp designed to disorient you and get you to confess national secrets.

Sanna Bråding, the lead actress and probably the centre of the film, does shine out even though the film itself may leave you feeling cold. Her performance is haunting at times, even though you are often questioning what`s occuring up on screen, and it can be uncomfortable to watch.

I can`t really pass judgement on this film, because it`s another of those cases where I don`t quite know what I feel. I certainly wasn`t feeling smiley, happy and warm inside after watching it, but a few days later, in the cold light of day, I`ve already gone luke warm on the film. The only things that stay in the mind are the shock images. If there was a real message, then I`ve missed it or forgotten it in the space of a few days.

So if you were wondering what all the fuss was about, and you aren`t easily offended, watch the film and see if you can find the point or the message that`s supposed to be here. Don`t just buy it because of the cover or the blurb. It`s not like that. There`s no titilation here, only humiliation.

The DVD itself is a fine effort with good picture and sound, and some interesting extras.