Fire Will Come
In the green, sleepy mountains of Galicia, an arsonist is released from prison, free to resume a pastoral life with his elderly mother. French-Spanish director Oliver Laxe’s cinematic intent spells itself out in its English-language title, but his film ambles along as Amador (Amador Arias in his feature debut) gets back on his feet, caring for cows and making friends. An unspeakable dread haunts the proceedings: What could go wrong in a place this beautiful? All it would take is a spark.
Amador Arias, Benedicta Sánchez, Inazio Abrao
- Notes From Ari WegnerI saw this film at the Melbourne International Film Festival on a whim, and since then it is one I think about so often. I think it’s one of the most perfect examples of naturalism I’ve seen. Following an arsonist who returns from prison to the area he has burned down, the film uses minimal narrative but holds a powerful tension just beneath the surface. The photography is humble and timeless, the landscape beautiful and evocative, and the casting (of non-actors) gives you the impression of being dropped into the daily rhythms of a son and mother tending to their animals and going about their day-to-day lives, albeit under the weight of the son’s past actions. At less than 90 minutes, this docurealist film is a beautiful example of how little plot is necessary when the other elements are rock-solid.
- Notes From Ed LachmanThe destiny of a son and his mother are linked by natural forces in Galicia in northern Spain—which seems almost like a world of its own. We see the son leaving prison after serving time for being accused of lighting fires in the forest. Laxe’s film is about how nature renews and heals itself in spite of man’s inability to understand one another.
