QUICK AND DIRTY: LIVE FROM LOCARNO

The eyes of the world look to Israel on a daily basis at the moment, but filmmaker Alina Orlov’s self-described ‘semi-documentary’ looks to comment on governance in a unique and thoughtful way. The Cavalry focuses on the treatment of horses, most notably those of a mounted cavalry unit in the Israeli Police Force. Throughout the short’s running time, these animals become a metaphor for abuses of power, and the way in which freedom is restricted.

With no voiceover or music, Orlov allows the story to speak for itself with only the occasional soundless subtitle expressing her thoughts on a shot that inspires the biggest emotion. The camera looks up at the foreboding barrier between Israel and The West Bank, using archive footage manipulated to appear almost surreal in moments that look back to the past. It’s observational, it feels like you are standing with the camera, which is at times both beautiful and disturbing.

At the beginning we see horses in their natural habitat, running in fields, looking at the camera serenely, it’s all very picturesque. That beauty fades however as we come to the cavalry unit, and things become uncomfortable to watch. We see horses in very small enclosures, and numbers rather than names. The trainer talks about getting all forms of resistance from the animal, anticipating a complaint about the whip he is using, insisting it is not used to hurt them. However, it’s not a whip that brings about the short’s most disturbing scene – an inflatable figure, the type usually seen on car garage forecourts, is repeatedly whacked and pushed into house “no. 7”, who sits there stoically absorbing the noise and movement. It’s disturbing, with Orlov’s subtitles wondering what “no.7” might have endured to be this still, before concluding she doesn’t want to know. We’re inclined to agree.

Watching animals suffer poor treatment is never pleasant, but there is a point to all this. In a few minutes Orlov makes a statement about the misuse of authority that hours of lectures could not achieve. Seeing something as innocent and beautiful as a horse be mistreated makes us wonder what happens to the humans they are designed to repress. These are, after all, primarily used for crowd control which, in a country as charged as Israel, makes these men akin to mounted soldiers going into battle. The chaos that the horses are desensitised to makes you think about the violence we consume through media every day, to which many of us have also become desensitised.

Any film that can bring back a sense of compassion to a complex story is worth admiring. The Cavalry isn’t here to wag its finger aimless, but rather ask questions that stop you in your tracks.

The Cavalry just premiered in the Pardi di Domani section of the 77th Locarno Film Festival.