A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
Feb. 28th, 2018 11:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iariaI saw this recommended and then a couple days later came across it when I was flipping through channels. I thought it was an Iranian film but while it's in Persian and takes place in Iran it's by an American filmmaker.
+ I liked the directing. The choice to do it in back and white worked really well. It made a very moody and atmospheric film with some nice use of light and shadow.
+ I liked the acting. They were all pretty good. It's too bad that most of them haven't done much other acting. Arash Marandi I thought was particularly good. It's too bad that he doesn't have a bigger career.
+ I also found the use of sound and silence interesting. It was done a lot differently from the usual blockbusters I watch - in that there is a lot of silence or slight background noise to characters not talking, actually I think that's it - there was very little background music only background noise and the focus was on the characters. The fact that there were long silences between talking only emphasised the talking more. I don’t watch independent/Sundance films so maybe this is common but it was very different for me.
+ The vampire mimicking Hossein as he walked down the street was pretty creepy. I loved that sequence. I liked that it was a common trick/hunting tactic for her and how we see her repeat it with others.
+ There were some really great shots when Atti was dancing for Hossein. The haloing of the light behind her was really pretty.
+ Arash/the vampire and the connection they forged worked well for me.
+ I liked the vampire taking the time to collect jewellery for the money Saeed owed Atti but I'm not sure why she didn't just take some of that money sitting right there. That would have been a lot more helpful.
+ I liked the vampire/Atti relationship a lot. The vampire clearly saw in Atti a quiet desperation similar to her own. It's why she was watching her, why she choose Saeed as her next victim after he was cruel to Atti, why she stole the jewellery for her, why she never seemed to considered Atti as a victim and why she came to her aid after Hossein forced her to take drugs. She sees herself in Atti and that draws her to her.
During their first talk the vampire tells Atti about who she (Atti) is but she is also clearly speaking about herself. They are both sad, neither remembers what they want or what wanting even feels like. "You don't remember wanting. It passed long ago. And nothing ever changes." ... yup, the vampire clearly has some immortality depression happening.
Though based on the map on Atti's wall, the fact that she has been saving her money, and that she doesn't do drugs despite working for a drug dealer says to me that in one aspect the vampire is wrong. That sadness and desperation are absolutely there but there is also clearly hope. Despite Atti saying only fools and the rich believe things can change. Atti is looking to the future, she wants things to change.
While I liked Arash's story and Arash/Vampire and how they all played out a part of me wishes the film had explored these two more. Atti and the vampire leaving together would have worked just as well if not more. I want to see the alternate universe version that has Atti as the co-lead not Arash and how that would play out. Despite her cynicism I think Atti absolutely could have shown the vampire how to want again. Hell, considering the way she was so drawn to Atti you could say she already did. Follow that to it's conclusion! Or at the end have Arash make the other obvious (tragic) choice and have the vampire and Atti leave together.
+ I like the combination of the vampire considering herself bad and yet wanting to be better. Of her targeting 'bad' people but then also killing the random homeless guy and terrifying the crap out of that poor kid and stealing his skateboard.
+ I liked how the cat ended up being a connecting piece throughout the movie and what eventually revealed the vampire's crime to Arash. Also I was somewhat worried through-out about the cats fate so I'm glad it wasn't abandoned at the end. I liked that last scene with it sitting between the two of them - this giant looming unspoken secret represented in feline form.
+ I loved that when Saeed took the vampire back to his home he immediately went into a bird-like mating display for her. Like the douchebag drug dealer version of it – doing a line of heroin, lighting a smoke, opening a briefcase of money and casually adding to it, picking up a couple weights to randomly do a couple of curls with them, then his attempting at a sexy dance in front of her while unzipping his jacket. I was not expecting something like that and it really did remind me of a bird trying to attract a mate and that amused me so much.
+ Saeed was played by actor Dominic Rains who played Kasius on SHIELD! I totally didn't recognise him without the blue paint! On the other hand I did recognise Mozhan Marnò aka Samar. As soon as Atti spoke in her first scene I went 'Samar?!' and she looked like her but then I second guessed myself because it as an Irania movie and it couldn't be her.
+ Shaydah/Rome Shadanloo is very pretty.
+ I liked the directing. The choice to do it in back and white worked really well. It made a very moody and atmospheric film with some nice use of light and shadow.
+ I liked the acting. They were all pretty good. It's too bad that most of them haven't done much other acting. Arash Marandi I thought was particularly good. It's too bad that he doesn't have a bigger career.
+ I also found the use of sound and silence interesting. It was done a lot differently from the usual blockbusters I watch - in that there is a lot of silence or slight background noise to characters not talking, actually I think that's it - there was very little background music only background noise and the focus was on the characters. The fact that there were long silences between talking only emphasised the talking more. I don’t watch independent/Sundance films so maybe this is common but it was very different for me.
+ The vampire mimicking Hossein as he walked down the street was pretty creepy. I loved that sequence. I liked that it was a common trick/hunting tactic for her and how we see her repeat it with others.
+ There were some really great shots when Atti was dancing for Hossein. The haloing of the light behind her was really pretty.
+ Arash/the vampire and the connection they forged worked well for me.
+ I liked the vampire taking the time to collect jewellery for the money Saeed owed Atti but I'm not sure why she didn't just take some of that money sitting right there. That would have been a lot more helpful.
+ I liked the vampire/Atti relationship a lot. The vampire clearly saw in Atti a quiet desperation similar to her own. It's why she was watching her, why she choose Saeed as her next victim after he was cruel to Atti, why she stole the jewellery for her, why she never seemed to considered Atti as a victim and why she came to her aid after Hossein forced her to take drugs. She sees herself in Atti and that draws her to her.
During their first talk the vampire tells Atti about who she (Atti) is but she is also clearly speaking about herself. They are both sad, neither remembers what they want or what wanting even feels like. "You don't remember wanting. It passed long ago. And nothing ever changes." ... yup, the vampire clearly has some immortality depression happening.
Though based on the map on Atti's wall, the fact that she has been saving her money, and that she doesn't do drugs despite working for a drug dealer says to me that in one aspect the vampire is wrong. That sadness and desperation are absolutely there but there is also clearly hope. Despite Atti saying only fools and the rich believe things can change. Atti is looking to the future, she wants things to change.
While I liked Arash's story and Arash/Vampire and how they all played out a part of me wishes the film had explored these two more. Atti and the vampire leaving together would have worked just as well if not more. I want to see the alternate universe version that has Atti as the co-lead not Arash and how that would play out. Despite her cynicism I think Atti absolutely could have shown the vampire how to want again. Hell, considering the way she was so drawn to Atti you could say she already did. Follow that to it's conclusion! Or at the end have Arash make the other obvious (tragic) choice and have the vampire and Atti leave together.
+ I like the combination of the vampire considering herself bad and yet wanting to be better. Of her targeting 'bad' people but then also killing the random homeless guy and terrifying the crap out of that poor kid and stealing his skateboard.
+ I liked how the cat ended up being a connecting piece throughout the movie and what eventually revealed the vampire's crime to Arash. Also I was somewhat worried through-out about the cats fate so I'm glad it wasn't abandoned at the end. I liked that last scene with it sitting between the two of them - this giant looming unspoken secret represented in feline form.
+ I loved that when Saeed took the vampire back to his home he immediately went into a bird-like mating display for her. Like the douchebag drug dealer version of it – doing a line of heroin, lighting a smoke, opening a briefcase of money and casually adding to it, picking up a couple weights to randomly do a couple of curls with them, then his attempting at a sexy dance in front of her while unzipping his jacket. I was not expecting something like that and it really did remind me of a bird trying to attract a mate and that amused me so much.
+ Saeed was played by actor Dominic Rains who played Kasius on SHIELD! I totally didn't recognise him without the blue paint! On the other hand I did recognise Mozhan Marnò aka Samar. As soon as Atti spoke in her first scene I went 'Samar?!' and she looked like her but then I second guessed myself because it as an Irania movie and it couldn't be her.
+ Shaydah/Rome Shadanloo is very pretty.
