Cemetery of Splendor

A truly meditative experience sure to leave you helplessly vulnerable into succumbing to eternal slumber as the soldiers in this film. That's a blessing and a curse for Cemetery of Splendor. But visually, this is a work of art. The colors light up the screen majestically. Everyone and everything in this film seems to be shifting in and out of a deep sleep. This is cinema in a catatonic state.

Apichatpong Weerasethakul had been on my radar after the elusive critical praise for his earlier work that seem fit only for lists like They Shoot Pictures. He doesn't seem to satisfy general audiences in the same way, despite winning at Cannes for Uncle Boonmee. Ostensibly his most personal film, Cemetery of Splendour seemed like a good start. It was certainly an introduction to his ambiguity which Splendour indulges in at every opportunity. It's very rich with its themes, though you have to go with the flow on its spirituality, belief in past lives and superstition, but those themes don't necessarily feel like they string together. More knowledge on Thai politics, history and culture would certainly help to arrive at a concise interpretation, but it does have enough universalities.

There is, however, a fascinating way it contrasts past and present simultaneously. That's its best ambiguous angle. Each shot can be its own individual thought rather than giving myself headaches trying to piece it together. Weerasethakul at least has a wonderful sense of poetic composition and juxtaposition, his choice of a rainbow light aiding him in many senses. But besides the calm and often profound nature of the film, what makes it strike a nerve is the deeply resonating performance from his lead Jenjira Pongpas. She balances humour with empathetic emotion with nuanced ease and anchors the film in her relateability despite her unique situation with her tumurous leg. Cemetery certainly gives a lot to chew on.

8/10

Cemetery of Splendour is a serene and mystical meditation on spiritual connection and dreaming. But Weerasethakul's first feature since 'Uncle Boonmee' will not be for everyone - it will either send you into deep spiritual contemplation, or send you to sleep.

The setting is a makeshift hospice in Thailand for soldiers with Narcalepsy; a sleeping condition in which patients are almost always asleep. Jen, a middle-aged woman with a physical impairment, is assigned to look after one of the soldiers as a volunteer. She rubs cream into his muscles, and takes him out for meals when he is awake. But beneath the ebb and flow of life at the hospice, there are other spiritual forces at play; talk of an ancient cemetery, and the spirits of kings and goddesses.

The film is shot beautifully. The camera stays fixed in wide angle - each scene being a window through which the characters enter and connect, reminiscent of the work of Bela Tarr. I think the camera moved twice the entire film.

Cemetery of Splendour is most definitely a slow burner. I'd go as far as to say that it doesn't really reach any heights of dramatic or narrative tension. The film is much more of an experiential, moody piece that lingers and floats like light sleep. I didn't quite understand it, and I almost fell asleep, but if the film is exploring Narcolepsy, then I think that's the point...

Once again Weerasethakul comes to us with an enigmatic, folklore-linked story. I find his stories and style of cinema to what Romania does with its cinema. The subject is so foreign and exotic to the normal cinephile, which 80% of the time, because of sheer quantity, consumes American cinema, that when we get to live such a film we are either fooled or dazzled by the narrative.

This is what I feel about Romanian cinema. I, being romanian, see romanian films about communism as something akin to beating a dead horse - and pretty bland cinematically. As a filmmaker that is a very interesting topic to tackle because of the lack of criticism, we couldn't satisfy back then...so, of course, we're gonna milk that cow for as long as possible, mostly because that romanian new wave was filled with directors that lived in that dying period of romanian communism.

The same is happening with Weerasethakuls movies. They are exotic, different, and out-of-the-ordinary...so because of this fresh air approach, the cinephile will most of the time love it unconditionally. I still think his images communicate something more than what is told but we should be skeptical while watching this...he might just dazzle us.

I feel the sleeping soldiers are a metaphor for the laziness of man and his lack of action. And we can find the main actress here also in "Syndromes...", so it's the same universe, as well as the ever-present erection.

When this film ended, I wasn't sure if I had watched it or slept through most of it. Either way, somewhat pleasant...