Hugo Jonker

Last weekend, Bobby visited Aga and myself here in Luxembourg. Bobby is a big movie buff, so naturally, the plan surfaced to go to the movies. As it turns out, there are quite a few decent movies playing currently.

Okay, okay, “decent” is to be understood in different ways: from shortlisted for the Oscars (The Wolf of Wallstreet) to Ye Olde Poppe Corney entertainment (I, Frankenstein). After assessing the available options, we decided to go all-out: first a very recent Luxembourgish movie about the second world war, and then another movie.

Despite my hinting that after a war movie, we could use something lightweight, we did not go to “I, Frankenstein”. (Damn!). It became the Oscar contender “12 years a slave”. We went to the cinema, and surprised the cassiere by buying tickets for basically 2 movies back-to-back. Had she had a second to think about it, she might have joined me in suggesting another movie…

Anyway, second things first: 12 Years a Slave. In a nutshell: a free black man in the USA of 1820s is kidnapped in Washington and deported to the Southern states, where slavery still exists. He then pretty much lives up to the title of the movie.

I just googled it, and in google you’ll find excerpts such as “It’s far from comfortable viewing, but 12 Years a Slave’s unflinchingly brutal look at American slavery is also brilliant” (Rotten Tomatoes).
Well, after watching Heemwei, phrases like “brutally honest” seem exaggerated. I guess that’s my main problem with the movie: it’s not at all a bad movie, but all the “brutal honesty” felt very much hidden behind a layer of Hollywood polishing. All the violence is deliberatedly filmed and shown – if someone is killed in this movie, they get an on-screen dying moment.

Contrast this with the Luxembourgish movie. It was brutal in its filming. 2 Luxembourgians, press-ganged into the German army in WW2, decide to desert and walk home. Deaths in this movie are similar to those my memory serves me up from Dutch WW2 movies (Meisje met het Rode Haar, Soldaat van Oranje, such movies). Basically, someone is shot, the victim falls over. No close up, no death struggle, no last glance into the camera. The moment of death is empty, meaningless, as are the killings themselves.

Following a discussion with Yann (office mate), it’s like the iconic D-Day scene from Saving Private Ryan: as a viewer, you suddenly (or at least: for me) are no longer sure if the cast will make it out on the other side. They might just get hit by a bullet or step on a mine or be bombed, and then they’re gone. In the words of “Fantasia”, these movies aren’t safe. My main gripe with 12 years a slave: it is safe.

Having said that: both are good movies (in my humble opinion). From either, you’ll leave the cinema feeling less than happy. If you want a brutal look at slavery, watch 12 years. If you’re interested in the brutal desolation, seeing how war arbitrarily makes its victims, watch Heemwei.

Pro-tip: don’t listen to Bobby, don’t watch both in succession. It’s a bit heavy on the soul.