FINISTERRAE - MIFF 2011

WTF?!?  Seriously, there is no better way to talk about this film, than saying “WTF”.  It makes little sense, but at the same time is, oddly, entertaining.  It is about two Russian ghosts who are sick and tired of being spirits, and thus decide to go on a journey to be reborn again and be amongst the living once more.  They meet up with an oracle who tells them they must follow a specific path and once they reach their destination, they must enter a doorway there, which is where they will be reborn.  From here the ghosts travel, one on horseback and one on foot (carrying a windsock, of course), through forests, snow covered fields and rivers, whilst doing the strangest things on their journey.  From killing hippies to just stopping to go fishing to making friends with a group of reindeers to dancing with a naked female ghost, the strangeness never ends.  

It appears to have no rhyme or reason and occasionally can be very amusing but you can only take so much nonsense before it starts to become monotonous and a bit of a bore.  Probably the most amusing thing is that the ghosts themselves are portrayed in the most clichéd fashion, as people with white sheets over themselves (see poster above), which is actually quite funny to see.  I also got a kick out of the horse and the way it changed between each scene.  Sometimes it would be a real horse, the next, a rocking horse, then an animatronic horse, to even a wheelchair at some points.  It is absurd but that is the film in a nutshell, I guess.  I also got quite a kick out of the fact that when the ghost is finally reborn, of all things he becomes a frog.

The best thing about this odd little film is the gorgeous cinematography from Eduard Grau, which is another reason this film remains interesting amongst all the weirdness.  Still at the end of the day, it is a very strange film, which really does not seem to have a point.

2.5 Stars.