How did "Belfast" - one of the main nominees for "Oscar"

The new work of director Kenneth Branagh "Belfast" is called one of the main favorites of the future "Oscar". In recent years, this author has been mainly engaged in film adaptations of various books: he shot “Murder on the Orient Express” and “Death on the Nile” based on the detective stories of Agatha Christie, personally playing Hercule Poirot, unsuccessfully tried to bring the Artemis Fowl novels to the screens and even released an unusual version of Shakespeare's Henry VIII called "The Pure Truth" (again with himself in the main roles).

Belfast is possibly Branagh's most personal film. The black and white drama is based on the director's impressions of his own childhood. The picture looks very sincere and beautiful. But when watching, it is difficult to avoid the feeling that all this was done for the sake of awards and festivals.

Filmed specifically for the Oscars

Nine-year-old Buddy (young but very talented Jude Hill) lives in 1960s Belfast. He has a close-knit family, although his father (he is simply called Pa - Jamie Dornan) is increasingly disappearing on business trips for a long time. Buddy has to grow up in difficult times: skirmishes between Catholics and Protestants are just beginning in the city, barricades are erected on the streets, and then the authorities bring in troops. But the young hero continues to believe in the best, falls in love with a classmate and enjoys going to the movies.

The black-and-white picture, based on the author's memoirs, tells about a family with an eternally absent father, living in a difficult period for the city and country. Wait, isn't that a description of Alfonso Cuarón's Oscar-winning Roma? It is this thought that will arise among connoisseurs of cinema at the first acquaintance with the film.

It's no secret that Kenneth Branagh has a difficult relationship with "Oscar». The Briton was nominated for this award five times, both as an actor, and as a director, and as a screenwriter. But each time the coveted reward slipped away. Therefore, it seems that now Branagh has carefully analyzed the previous winners and collected literally all the components of success in the new film.

So assurancesFor Movie Memoir 'Belfast,' Kenneth Branagh Was Inspired by Shimmering Hollywood Classics - Awards Spotlight / IndieWire director that he did not watch Roma at all, they even look ironic. Although he immediately mentions that he was guided by the classics of cinema “400 Blows” and “Goodbye, Children”, and parallels with these famous paintings are also easy to notice. Which, alas, does not negate Branagh's too obvious desire to please critics. We can already say that he partly achieved his goal: the film received an award at the Toronto Film Festival and one prize for "golden globewith six nominations. The final frontier is the Oscars.

At the same time, the author is sincerely nostalgic

After the sarcastic beginning of the article, it may seem to readers that they are waiting for an absolutely cold picture, filled with moralizing dialogues and social themes. But, fortunately, the dream of an Oscar did not prevent Kenneth Branagh from making a warm and kind film.

Remembering childhood, the director no longer focuses on social topics, but on the history of one family. Young Buddy meets the world. Mother (or simply Ma - Caitrina Balfe) serves as a moral guide for the boy, protecting him from bad deeds. Grandparents (the favorite of director Judi Dench and finally the positive role of Ciaran Hinds) become sources of worldly wisdom and just love.

But the most important emphasis Brana makes on the protagonist's craving for cinema and art in general, clearly hinting that he himself grew out of these impressions. He even highlights it visually: the only color moments in the black-and-white Belfast are stills from films or what is happening on the stage of the theater. Reception frontal, but filmed very beautifully. Especially when even the reflection of the screen in the glasses of one of the characters is painted. And in the final picture for a short time and completely turns into musical.

The emotionality of the film for the most part rests on a well-chosen cast. If someone still hasn't been able to forgive Jamie Dornan his role in "50 Shades of Grey", then after the image of an unsuccessful but sincere father, all claims will disappear completely (although it’s better to add to this last year’s comedy “Barb and Star Go to Vista del Mar” - the apotheosis of the artist’s self-irony).

Outlander star Caitriona Balfe is very organic in the image of a wise mother. And there’s no need to talk about Dench and Hinds: it’s as if they don’t play at all, but simply talk about their emotions from the screen.

The director was also lucky with the young Jude Hill in the title role. His charm often saves even weak scenes and makes him endure chaotic editing. Although related to the character of this character, perhaps the main problem of the film.

In Belfast, an unnaturally naive childish look is presented

Recently, another black and white picture about a child in the world of adults was released - “Camon Camon» Mike Mills. And it is in contrast to the predecessor that the superficial study of the image of Buddy is especially noticeable.

Mills showed the young hero as a full-fledged person with his own opinion: he observes the world, expresses judgments, and even teaches others something. Branagh performs with a typical condescending adult stance. In his world, children are concerned only with their personal entertainment and purely local concerns.

Perhaps it is strange or even brazen to argue with the author about his own memories. But it is very hard to believe that the smart Buddy does not really reflect even on the topic of the ongoing civil war, not to mention the problems in the family. Moreover, his relatives are almost at the center of the clashes.

It is worth noting that the screens often show naive young heroes who are not aware of the horrors of what is happening. Suffice it to recall the filmLife is BeautifulRoberto Benigni and Taika Waititi's Jojo Rabbit. But both authors made distorted perception an artistic device: an idealistic game world against a harsh and gloomy reality. In Belfast, there are no such parallels, the child sees and understands everything perfectly. He's just interested in other things.

The director gives an excursion into history and speaks on a topical issue

Yet the majority of potential viewers of this film are not children. And, perhaps, the main audience will be more interested not in the main character, but in the general picture of events. And here you can find some interesting and useful ideas. For starters, many are not at all well versed in the events that took place in Belfast in the 1960s, when in Northern Ireland, the struggle between Catholics and Protestants intensified (read "between Ireland and Britain"). The tape does not go too deep into history, but it can be a starting point for studying materials about the civil war.

But more importantly, Belfast, although it tells about real events of the past, is relevant at any time and in any country. In fact, it is dedicated to how to remain human in difficult times, when old acquaintances literally beat each other outside the window. And for a significant part of the film, Buddy's parents choose: to continue living in their native and understandable lands or to leave for more peaceful places.

And let the director offer the most obvious ways out of difficulties: stick to relatives, love and believe in the best. Banality does not always look tedious and boring. Sometimes they support, reminding that something remains unchanged.

Belfast is sure to get its share of attention and awards at the Oscars, even if its ostentatiousness catches the eye. The picture can hardly be considered a cold calculation and the purest Oscar bait (the so-called films that are shot specifically for awards). Kenneth Branagh tries to be sincere and charges with humanity, talking about the importance of the family for both a child and any adult. So the tape leaves a pleasant impression, albeit with a slight sediment.