Honeyland

"Honeyland" has such a strong dramatic narrative that you wouldn't necessarily know it was a documentary rather than a scripted fictional film.

It tells the story of a woman eking out an existence in the mountains of North Macedonia while caring for her ailing mother. Her life is extremely hard and void of any of the conveniences most of us take for granted -- you know, such minor things like electricity and plumbing -- but she's developed a rhythm that works for her, one that relies very much on a symbiotic relationship with the natural world. She raises bees, and takes the honey she harvests from them into the nearest city to sell at marketplaces. Then enter this absolutely horrid neighbor family who come bumbling into her neighborhood and makes a mess of everything. They're after a quick buck without knowing how to do anything the right way, so they kill all of her bees, nearly ruin the bees' natural habitat, lose a whole bunch of their cows to a disease, all while shouting and bickering and making jackasses of themselves in front of a film crew.

The dynamic between these neighbors captures the dynamic of the world in microcosm. There are those who understand that humans and nature can co-exist, indeed must co-exist if humans are to survive, and those who just want to shortsightedly rape the earth for what they can get from it right now. It's a quietly devastating documentary.

"Honeyland" is the only film in Oscar history to be nominated for both Best International Feature Film and Best Documentary Feature.

EDIT: At the time I wrote the above statement it was true. But since then "Collective" has gone on to do the same.

Grade: A.

Ljubo Stefanov and Tarmara Kotevska's HONEYLAND, an entrancing triple Sundance award winner is a stunning verite documentary. It plays so intimately, and with such verisimilitude that it feels almost like a narrative film. Our 'lead actress' is Hatidze, a lonely bee farmer of Turkish descent in the remote hills of Macedonia. She occasionally ventures into the larger town below to sell her high quality pure honey -- and to pick up a few provisions. Her only other companion is her frail mother Natife, who she cares for in their ramshackle hut. The scenes between them are so tender and detailed that it becomes almost unbearably palpable at times, whether it's the daughter gently tending to her blind eye, talking about marrying off the mid-50s woman, or sharing a meager meal of a single banana. Their isolated like is loudly broken up by the arrival of a large itinerant family who comes with and even larger assembly of livestock. At first, Hatidze and the families head, Hussein, try and get along. The numerous children provide some comfort and companionship to the beekeeper. Finding out how much money Hatidze gets for her premium nectar, Hussein latches onto the idea of harvesting bees himself. Inevitably, tension and hardship follow.

What is most remarkable about HONEYLAND is that even though it functions as almost a narrative drama, none of it feels forced or constructed. The camerawork is particularly effective as the two cinematographers Fejmi Daut and Samir Ljuma bring us right into the scene whether it be spotting a single bee buzzing on a dripping honeycomb, Hatidze fingers gently touching her mother's face or the birth of a cow, the viewer is there. There aren't any fancy cuts or montages. The music is sparse, if noticeable at all, save for some scratchy source music that plays on an old radio attached to a homemade antenna trying to barely capture some signal from the world below.

HONEYLAND depicts a couple of significant events in Hatidze's life, but they aren't overly emphasized. They just play out, like simple steps in a life. The Documentary ends without triumph or tragedy - but, just a quite moment of solitude. Neither Hatidze, nor the viewer, knows what her fate may be, but, we do believe, she'll persevere.

This movie focuses on the tiny things that can make the life beautiful. Hatidze owns close to nothing, doesn't have own family but still manages to enjoy life.

What is the reason for Hatidze to continue living? Do we humans need to have a goal that drives us throug our everyday and what when we fail achieving it?

Those are the two questions that haunt me after watching this masterpiece.

In a microcosm you get to see what humans are doing wrong. The amount of time the filmmakers have spent with the subject of the film, shows in the level of intimacy that the camera has acquired in their lives. As if it's a pair of eyes. And not a camera. Making this a thoroughly engaging film.

Fighting with your neighbors. Struggling to care for your aging parent. Plying your craft and trade in the compassionless barreling economy of scale, so different from, and destructive to, the natural economies of being human. It is the same here, there, and everywhere. When there is no social contract their is imbalance and suffering, when the natural order is defended, there is simplicity and sustainability. One of my favorites of the year. Cinema is many things, but at its most beautiful it is an empathy engine.