this year marks the 50th anniversary of 2001: space odyssey since it was conceived so i just feel like its a perfect time for a revisit! for me this is not only a film, but instead a transcendent cinematic experience that graced us with one of the most grandeur and visionary artforms in history. kubrick explored a theme thats way ahead of its time and conjured it in an insanely sophisticated visualization, resulting to a blitz of candy for the eyes.
it contains minimal narrative (there's literally no proper dialogue for the first 20 minutes) and the expositions are juxtaposed with epic space scenes and goosebumps inducing music such as johann strauss' classic blue danube and gyorgi ligeti's haunting lux aeterna. with kubrick's masterful skills, the whole combination transforms into a visual poetry that gradually draws us into its surrealist world and eventually leaves us breathless. the defying gravity scene via centripetal motion, the innovative model for spaceship designs, the highly detailed interiors and exteriors; they present a futuristic vision but also look realistic at the same time.
through this masterpiece kubrick invites us to reanalyze the basic nature of human instinct, evolution, and the thought that we are never alone in this universe. that there are endless possibilities out there that we have yet to discover, that theres no limit for our intelligence to advance, and that in the end its not about the destination but the journey, hence odyssey! undoubtedly a film that will be discussed for many generations to come.
"it gets better," they said.
"bad things dont last forever," they said.
what they dont say is things dont get better actually we just grew tolerance and thicker skin to overcome pain a bit better because life is literally a game where we gotta be stronger to beat difficult stages except game rewards us with happy ending while in reality happiness is temporary no one ever ever equipped us with proper strategy guide and we are thrown into this simulation that keeps on glitching and breaking and reality does not matter because nothing feels real anymore as the constant blow hits us over and over again numbing our senses and the ability to function. i hate the phrase 'everything happens for a reason' because it sounds more like a lazy excuse to justify terrible things but i guess sometimes all we can cling to is hope and thats not even a safe option because hope is a double edged sword that either motivates or blinds us. people are proud for cheating death but honestly cheating life sounds more appealing to me.
ive heard about this film long before it was announced. at that time the buzzes revolved around 'scariest movie ever!', 'scariest horror since the exorcist', etc. bombastic right? to be honest, initially i was quite skeptical because the pompous claims usually didnt meet my expectation, plus western horrors have been going through a rather monotonous route lately. so when hereditary finally hit local theaters, i didnt waste any time and immediately went to prove it myself.
and boy i was... blown.
this is what it feels like to ride a slow roller coaster in hell.
hereditary is a study of build up and tension. it lingers in your mind and touches your psyche with complete terror, hopelessness, and sorrow. ari aster masterfully directed it with clever play of shadow and lighting that induced your peripheral fear of something that might or might not exist; imagine staring into a dark hallway for a long time that you start questioning whether you're seeing things or its just in your mind. its batshit eerie and dreadful. the scenes are adorned with sublime sound design that the minimum usage of loud music only maximizes the suspense.
the film's tonality is basically built on the mixture of horror and family dynamics, with several conflicts highlighting fundamental matters from relationships to mental health issues. toni colette's tour de force as a grievous matriarch is phenomenal and she does so well at capturing the intensity of the atmosphere. that dinner scene? my soul was gone. also milly saphiro's quiet, haunting expression successfully made me feel uncomfortable in my seat throughout her appearance on screen. what an incredible cast.
one of the most prominent things is many scenes are slowly shot from the distance, living up the illusion that the whole family members are 'pawns' inside a house miniature as seen in the opening. while i usually have problems with pacing, hereditary is like a slow burn that keeps me petrified despite how drawn out it gets in the middle. it eventually pays off with an ending twist so mad that despite unnecessary amount of foreshadowing in the first act it still catches me off guard. for me its in the vines of rosemary's baby, starting from the constant anxiety to the major cult reveal.
i get that hereditary might not fall into the mainstream category that pleases everyone with straightforward expositions and jumpscares. its horror at its most visceral, and its certainly not for those who werent ready.
