MILAN – Thirteen, surprising minutes arrived directly from Locarno where we discovered Je sors acheter des cigarettes by Osman Cerfon, director and graphic design expert, who creates an original, modern and at the same time disturbing project. But let’s go in order: what is Locarno Shorts Weeks? A digital initiative of the Locarno Film Festival dedicated to short films (find everything here) where you can (re)discover little gems such as, precisely, Je sors acheter des cigarettes, which you can see below. In the short we meet Jonathan, a twelve year old who lives with his mother and sister. His reality, in a suburban condominium, is animated by strange presences: men with faces similar to him live locked up in the narrow spaces of the apartment. But who are they?.
They appear to be figments of her imagination, as no one else sees them. However, they are physical presences, nothing supernatural. Behind the apparent veil of comedy, however, a deep trauma is hidden. Employing an original and innovative representation, Cerfon stages the supporting beams of the drama of Jonathan’s life: absence and obsession. More precisely, the absence of the father and the obsession with recreating his presence. The director takes his cue directly from his experience: growing up without a father figure, he has always wondered what he was like, what his physiognomy, his character, his attitudes were. For this, he gives particular emphasis to the reflection.
Several scenes show the characters in the mirror and, in the drama of everyday life, the one with the most expressive power shows Jonathan in the mirror: half his face, half is upside down with the features of one of the strange men. The loss of personality, which is no longer able to distinguish the boundary that separates the boy Jonathan from the father Jonathan. The tunes Montagues and Capulets by Prokofiev and Stabat Mater Dolorosa by Pergolesi accompany the absence in and out, which thus becomes an inevitable entity. The short film is, in its creator’s intention, a puzzle. Minute after minute, clues and elements unfold that lead the viewer on a treasure hunt, without knowing exactly what they are looking for.
Because of this, Je Sors Acheter Des Cigarettes it is to be seen and seen again, each time discovering new details, new particulars, which make the whole even tastier and, at the same time, disturbing. It can be a painting by Magritte hanging near the entrance, the “no entry” to cockroaches on the bedroom door, the father’s face even on the cereal box. Without neglecting the storylines of the mother and sister; Cerfon makes his characters move inside particular rooms, with unusual colors that accentuate the estrangement. And everything has a story to tell.
From The Simpsons To Bojack: How Much Animation Has Changed On Television
Je Sors Acheter Des Cigarettes | Parody and tragedy in a strange short