Absurdistan

The Title says it all: ABSURDISTAN.

An International/Russian film that has its ups and downs, so to speak! And the emphasis here is really on "INTERNATIONAL"! German Director/Co-Writer: Veit Helmer; Azerbaijani Co-Writer: Zaza Buadze; Female Lead: Kristyna Malerova-No INFO on her nationality, but surname appears to be Czech; German Male Lead: Max Mauff; The rest of the cast hails from at least a dozen different European and Westeren Asian countries! This explains why so few cast members were given dialog...Most of them either don't speak Russian, or speak it with a very discernible accent!

ABSURDISTAN is a very visual experience. IMDb talks about how the 40 year old Helmer loved silent films in his university film studies. Perhaps this is why the word "Slapstick" is bantered about a lot referring to this film. Slapstick is very over-the-top. Absurdistan's style is much too "Tableauesque" (Coining term via poetic license!) to be labeled slapstick. But whatever you want to call it: It works... Most of the time!

FANTASY is another term people seem insistent upon using to explain segments of the film. I'd say there are a few mildly surreal/absurd moments, but nothing beyond that. ABSURDISTAN really doesn't remind me of any other film, except perhaps 1960's Never on Sunday. There is one brief moment of nudity. AYA, the female lead, can't sleep owing to the heat, and climbs up on the roof, removing her pajamas. Temelko spots her and chases her around for a moment, but that's about it. There is a little simulated sex done with clothes-on, but aimed much more at comedy than at any type of arousal.

Oddly, I perceive ABSURDISTAN as a perfect extended family get-together flick, provided everyone is over 14 or 15! It's very easy to imagine a large Eastern-European family getting together and having an exceptionally enjoyable time watching this! If anybody tries my suggestion, let me know how it works out, please!.... ENJOY/DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in English or Español, are most welcome!

Actually, because the movie was shot in Azerbaijan, I was intrigued. I came across a different movie, it wasn't what I expected. It had a different theme. Not bad.

Veit Helmer's "Absurdistan" is a satire on the temptation to shirk one's responsibility. It's set in a village in the Caucasus ignored by all the surrounding governments. The men are so obsessed with proving their manliness that they've ignored the aging pipe that provides the village with its water. So, the women use their own power to force some change.

One trick that the movie uses is to never identify the country in which the story takes place. They speak Russian, but it could just as easily be Georgia, Armenia or Azerbaijan (or even Chechnya). The point is that this village is one of the world's forgotten places. The people rely exclusively on each other and their know-how. It's inevitable that the two young protagonists get caught up in the village's traditions and lackadaisical attitude towards a glaring problem. For all that we know, there could be places like this in the US or Canada.

I recommend the movie.

German director/writer,Veit Helmer's films are an acquired taste (much like Canada's Guy Maddin). His style of directing seems to lean toward the mainly visual (there is little to no dialog in his films),and in metaphorical terms,has a tendency to (at times)resemble some of the films of Czech film makers,Jiri Menzil,etc. In this gentle fable,'Absurdistan',the story takes place in the fictional village of Absurdistan,somewhere in a part of Russia that seems to have been forgotten by time (it's not supposed to be listed on any map),but still exists,none the less. Aya & Temelko are two young people who have been in love with one another since childhood. Aya's fortune telling grandmother predicts that the two should get together when two star signs merge. Sound simple enough? There is a problem in the village with the water supply (and the lazy,good for nothing men,who are content with just hanging out in the local teahouse all day while their women do all the work,including the work projects that the men start,but never seem to finish). When things get downright dire,what with the nearly total lack of water,the women stage a sex strike ultimatum on the men. It's up to Temelko to try & fix the water problem, so he can be with his beloved Aya forever. Veit Helmer directs & co-writes the screenplay (with the assistance of Zaza Buadze,Gordan Mihic & Ahmet Golbol). The cinematography by George Beridze makes nice use of what appears to be a arid,near desert environment. The cast is made up of mainly Russian actors who do their job well. If you enjoyed Helmer's film, 'Tuvalu' from a few years back, this will be another feather in your conical cap. Spoken (what little on screen dialog,outside of the narrative structure)in Russian with English subtitles. No MPAA rating,but contains flashes of nudity & sexual content.

This feature was filmed in Azerbaijan. This is remarkable since the main theme of the story involves sex, and in a Muslim country, this type of movie is definitely frowned upon. The story surrounds a young couple, Ava and Temelko. They are madly in love and have been told by her fortune-telling grandmother the night they may consummate their relationship. However, before the special night arrives, they run into problems as the lazy men of the town they inhabit have not performed any maintenance on the town's water pipes and they have broken. The women are fed up with having to do without water and go on "strike"...no water, no sex. The movie reminds me a little of "The Gods Must Be Crazy;" silly and slapstick humor along with a little more subtle humor underneath. The performances of Kristyna Malerova and Max Mauff were sympathetic and amusing.

To the reviewer below, I got my "facts" from the director of the film at the screening I attended...I was just repeating what I heard. I took the man (and the others involved in the film who agreed with him) at his word, and I think you are taking this commentary just a tad too seriously.