Ober

Ober, was one of the MANY films shown at the Seattle International Film Festival this year and one of the few I selected to view. Ober is a very black comedy which in many ways is an insider joke that only writers would fully appreciate. Often times when deeply involved in a writing project whether it is a screen play,stage play, or novel, a writer will feel like his/her characters have "taken on a life of their own". Well, this is what happens to Herman the screenwriter whose storyline begins to displease Edgar his main character.

There are some violent scenes, but so overplayed those scenes seem to be more parodies of movie violence than the "real" movie violence.

One scene toward the middle of this film is especially funny and painful at the same time. It involves an old shopkeeper and a bow and arrows. That scene appears to have been shot in "real" time,and with minimum edited put in the movie in real time. Funny and painful, but funny anyway.

Ober, which is German and Dutch for "waiter" is subtitled which for me was annoying. I understand a little bit of Dutch so I could pick up on some of the dialog and spent so much energy on listening, I missed reading some of the subtitles. It would be nice if this wacky gem could be dubbed into English.

If it should appear at an "art" movie house or a film festival in your community you should go see it.

Edgar (Alex van Warmerdam) is an ageing waiter with a life as empty as the spacious highway restaurant in which he works. His mistress sits at a table hoping to get some attention from him in a last desperate attempt to rescue their sinking relationship. Some guests take advantage Edgar's serving position to humiliate him in a spectacle of absurdity. Edgar is at the bottom, and sees only one way out - to complain to the writer of the story to get better lines or at least a shimmer of happiness in his life.

This is a peculiar piece of film. A character complaining to the writer about the misery in his life is one thing, but the side characters come along as well, and the writer's girlfriend who interferes with their fate as well Nothing good can come out of this. Edgar not only lives his misery but realises that the creator of his fate is pushing him through the absurdity on purpose. When Edgar complains about his submissive suffering, all the writer can do to justify himself is telling Edgar that he must suffer. When Edgar protests, the writer retorts that he knows what he has in store for Edgar, as if there is some higher purpose for Edgar's suffering. But that is bluff. The writer does not know where he is going with his story and merely sends Edgar off on a chase from misery to surreal.. 

The pace of the movie is upbeat is the first half, but when we get a key scene in the thriller aspect of it, the acquisition of a weapon, the movie grinds down to a halt! Edgar walks into a bashed-up curiosities cabinet, asks for the weapon, to which the owner, an old man dressed up as a woman, proceeds to get it down and wrap it up with a painfully slow imprecision. The audience can nail-bitingly complain all they like, but they will have to wait till he is finished for Edgar to get out of there to solve his problems in the last leg of the story. When you submit to the will of the director of the film you too have to sit through the lot, just like Edgar and the other characters.

As the movie does not really go anywhere, as far as the story is concerned, it is tempting to dismiss the entire film, despite its originality. We see the writer, although he is just a character in the film, and can not help but curse his incompetence at creating an incoherent, illogical story. But at the same time, it is that same incompetent writer which put the brilliant dry humoured dialogues into the script which had the audience laughing out loud. Still clearly one of the most original directors in European cinema today, do not miss out on him, but if you have not seen any of his work yet, start with Little Tony or The Northerners, leaving this one for later.

Most films about human life's ordinary characters are able to charm audiences as they depict the true feelings of human beings. Dutch film 'Ober' is one such film which succeeds enormously as it has chosen a very good theme. It is in the form of the depiction of a waiter who can be hailed as the most ordinary of all ordinary people. Director Alex Van Warmerdam is able to add extra strength to his film by playing the leading role. As the film begins, Alex is shown to bear all insults with utmost coolness and fortitude. However, as the film progresses, Alex decides to ask tough questions about his fate. This situation gives rise to a series of hilarious encounters with screen writers who exercise absolute control over their characters and their fates. In the field of art, an artist is given complete control to develop the characters. One must nevertheless ask the most pertinent questions : Who controls the life of a character ? Is it the character himself/herself who controls his/her destiny ? Does the character have an independent existence ? These questions do not have simple answers as a lot of subjective perspectives do come into picture. Director Alex Van Warmerdam makes a good try at answering them in his film "Ober". His film is a poignant plea for respecting all human beings regardless of their foibles.

Alex van Warmerdam is the David Lynch of the Dutch cinema. His movies are enigmatic and absurd, and they are filled with dark themes and sexual tension. ''Ober'' is no exception, although it did feel a bit more mainstream than ''Grimm'' or ''De Noorderlingen''.

This story evolves around a waiter getting smacked around by nearly everyone in his near vicinity. Fed up by this misfortune, he decides to pay the author of his story a visit and ask him for a few chances in the scenario of life. Wrong choice. From that point on the story becomes weirder and weirder.

I was a bit disappointed at first. The story of meeting the author of your life has the potential to become a thought provoking movie like ''Being John Malkovich'' or ''Eternal Sunshine...''. But sadly it didn't quite reach that level. It's more of a well-crafted and absurd comedy than anything else. That doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy the movie. Alex van Warmerdam, playing the role of the waiter himself, displays himself as a comical genius. It's really funny to see this poor guy being used as boxing equipment by almost everyone. There is also a totally random scene in which nothing else happens than seeing an old lady wrapping up a bow and arrow. It may sound boring, but on-screen it is hilarious.

As a whole this is a highly enjoyable and funny comedy. Not as good as I hoped for, but certainly better than most of the Dutch garbage released. We need this kind of movies to put Holland on the map of the movie business.

I am pleased to report that Alex van Warmerdam's "OBER" was well received by the audience at yesterday's Toronto International Film Festival screening. Spectators can be fickle at 9:45 a.m., and it is a testament to the director's talent that his film elicited a laugh-out-loud response from beginning to end.

I tend to be skeptical of films from the Netherlands. I'm no philistine, but I have encountered several movies from this region that I can only describe as "weird." Now, I won't claim that there aren't unusual elements in this film, but they are employed in the service of comedy rather than abstraction.

Warmerdam, himself, plays Edgar, a middle-aged waiter who suffers through confrontations with his belligerent customers, unruly neighbours, his chronically ill wife, and his demanding mistress. Warmerdam's dead-pan performance is so consistent that the passivity that defines his character is not compromised when Edgar visits Herman, the screen-writer who is controlling his destiny; he is simply worn out, and has come to request, not demand, that his life might be propelled in a more agreeable direction.

Herman concedes, but as any screen-writer will attest, a compelling narrative requires conflict. The various fates that are in store for Edgar are, yes, unusual at times, but the comedy is particularly strong in this film because each trajectory is so "unexpected." Another festival film this year is "STRANGER THAN FICTION," (w/ Will Farrell & Dustin Hoffman) which has a similar premise. It was sold out before my tickets were assembled, so I can't assess whether or not it is as successful in its execution as OBER. I do feel, however, that Warmerdam's film has the potential to satisfy a wider audience than it will ever encounter, and I would urge people to seek it out. It is a film with great depth, but it needs to be emphasized that, first and foremost, OBER works as an accessible comedy that even the most skeptical movie-lovers will enjoy.