The Earth Is Blue as an Orange

Wonderful perspective on the life of a strong woman raising her four children in a war zone, told through a film being shot by her eldest daughter who dreams of becoming a filmmaker. With great intimacy and aesthetics, the camera stays very close on their everyday life and struggle, without touching political topics.

"Earth is blue like an orange" is a joint Ukrainian-Lithuanian project, captures the story of a single mother Anna and her four children who share a lifelong love affair with the movies. Every member of the family has a passion for cinema, driving them to shoot, edit and screen a film inspired by their own life set against the backdrop of war in Donbass town (Ukraine) between 2014-2015. This is one of the best ode to cinema, a love letter to the medium which is superbly performed by everybody, although the cast is mostly non-actors. It is a sort of intellectual fearlessness that deepens the story with metastory. The title of the film references the poem of French surrealist Paul Éluard 'La Terre est bleue comme une orange', that appeared in his collection of poems 'L'Amour la poésie' published in 1929.

While in the background, as always in the Iryna Tsilyk's cinema, there is the recurring theme of War and it's aftermath but in this documentary, we see her love for the medium and an emotional bonding emerges. It is so tough to live through this pandemic, it is not easy when you don't have anyone around. There's been so much uncertainty, so much fear, loss, threat of bio warfare, nuclear war in the air, geo-political tensions. It is dreadful speculating for what will come later, maybe another (illegal) invasion by these rich power blocks and hegemonic militaries, possible world war, communal riots, more of these unethical experimentation manipulated in a lab or place of worship or anywhere. But the sci-fi kid inside me salivates at the idea of zombie outbreak or alien invasion. Lol, this has got to be a joke anyway Life has been on tetherhooks and work of art like The Earth Is Blue as an Orange (2020) is necessary for sanity. I recommend this documentary that should not only be of interest to arthouse fans but anyone who loves cinema to check it out altleast once.

Directed by the talented Inna Sahakyan, this documentary offers a unique blend of realism and artistry. It follows a family living in the war-torn region of Donbass as they navigate life amidst chaos while trying to create a film about their experiences. What struck me the most was how beautifully it captures the power of storytelling, even in the direst circumstances. The young kids in the film are incredibly charming, and their innocent perspective adds a layer of heart to the gritty reality around them. Watching them portray their lives through the lens of a film project was both poignant and uplifting. The cinematography is stunning, with a mix of intimate family moments and sweeping shots of the landscape. It's a reminder of both the beauty and the sadness that coexist in life.

This is one of these true-life fly on the wall documentaries that really does hit home. It centres around the mother of four "Anna" who is trying to bring up her children with some semblance of normality amidst the ongoing troubles in the Donbass area of the Ukraine. With the bombs dropping and the bullets never far away, the family decide to make a film depicting their day to day struggles and their day to day joys - and, surprisingly, there are quite a few of the latter to brighten up the otherwise prevailing scenario of doom and gloom. The children age from mid-teens to ten years younger, and they share a passion for the cinema. Now there is a lack of what we could call spontaneity here. The cast - all amateurs who really are living through this situation, do frequently come across as well cued and rehearsed, but that's more about their serious efforts at delivery. What they are saying and representing comes across as entirely real and their desire to get it right suggests a professionalism that sometimes seems incongruous when you consider just how dangerous their day-to-day lives actually are. The fact that they bother to produce something of an high standard is really quite commendable. The family are a close knit bunch, they have their good days and their not so good days, their tantrums and their tiaras - but there's a real sense of love emanating for us here, and a bit of daft humour too. Anna is trying to keep life for her family as "ordinary" as possible - even if they do have to take to shelters at night to avoid the bombings. They use technology to create something poignant here, and the intimate photography delivers something of the vulnerability of all as they refuse to cower in an underground bunker. Not always an easy watch, but enthralling.