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| La Cinquieme Saison uses pagan religion, plague imagery and a sinister rural backdrop to deliver a masterpiece of apocalyptic terror and ambiguity. |
We are welcomed with open arms to a country town in the Ardennes. It’s the end of winter and we are shown a living, breathing landscape full of life, young love and a tender warm community. The town are gathering to celebrate the death of Father Winter with a giant sacrificial bonfire. But all is not well. The people stand by but fire won’t catch. It proves a dark omen for the townspeople as we enter spring. Crows stop crowing; Cows cease to lactate and the crops are nowhere to be seen. Some are more affected than others and when rationing is suggested old human-nature rears its ugly head and says no. This starts a downward spiral as the town descends deeper into hunger, fear and madness.
The story of the town is wonderfully mirrored in the two young lovers we meet at the beginning. What starts with the most tender of kisses is quickly tarnished and gradually rots as one takes the role of a ‘has’ and the other a ‘has not’.
Directors Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodsworth seem to hold little hope for puny human inventions like love and community. They believe when the chips are down the humans will eat each other. It’s a popular tool of the post-apocalyptic world, it’s certainly been done before and no doubt it will be used again but in this film it fiendishly complements the dark rural element. Indeed a few influences are on show: There’s plenty of Lars Von Trier going on in its music and cinematography but this is most definitely a beast of its own. Each shot is a balanced, meticulously planned painting and the music turns the stomach with every note.
The film stays wonderfully unpredictable right to the end; a beautifully produced and horrifying piece of work. The film is this critic’s frontrunner for the top prize on Saturday and although it would be nice to see Harmony Korine or Ulrich Seidl lifting the statue, this is without doubt a worthy winner. A second screening is scheduled for 8:30 today so fear not if you see a slightly groggy Irishman wandering the streets of the Lido.
