QUICK’N DIRTY: LIVE FROM TALLINN
By conventional standards, this was DMovies‘ eighth consecutive year at Tallinn, and my third year working as a film journalist at it (like in 2024, I elected to review my films from Dublin) I was asked to review everything in the POFF documentary section. By and large, the movies were of a high standard, some of them truly superb.
Edge of the Night (Vladimir Loginov) is very rich in imagery. Personally, I enjoyed One Day I Wish to See You Happy (Maryna Nikolcheva) and Goodbye Sisters (Alexander Murphy) most of the selection in the competition: deeply human tales about ordinary people in extraordinary times. That is the modus operandi of a series in this nature, showcasing humans at their most social, energetic and fragile.
You can read Eoghan’s full coverage of the Doc@PÖFF International Competition by clicking here.
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Beneath the surface
The Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival also included The Lunch: a Letter to America (Gianluca Vassallo; pictured just below), an excoriation/celebration of Trump’s United States. It had flairs, but didn’t match the ambition the story demanded. I awarded Days of Wonder (Karin Pennanen)the same criticism. Pennanen’s documentary only received two stars from this writer, as did The Feast of the Wolf (Jadran Boban) : character driven story based around fantasy and conspiracies. Miss Jobson (Amanda Sans Pantling; pictured at the top of this article) was lit up solely by one character who had lived a long and happy life. Rather than encapsulate the findings from a life spent near a celebrity in reggae, the titular character showcased her work as a lawyer par excellence.
Then there’s It’s Winter (Sajad Imani) a moving feature set in the Iranian hinterlands. Not only was it a barren terrain for people to live in, the place was far from ideal for women due to the culture of the territory. Drawn on the concept of memory, the work similarly was fuelled by the desire and determination to seek new terrains. Electing Ms Santa (Raisa Răzmeriță) was yet another yarn about a woman trying to progress in her chosen life. Far Away (M. Tayfur Aydın) encapsulated the horror of an artist returning to a place beset with war and chaos.
The collection was about introspection of expression, the auteur doubling as a fly-on-the-wall. The protagonists show aspects of themselves, for better and worse, expressing shadings that lead to an expressive whole. Humans lie, humans recant, humans shout: it’s part of the tapestry of life. Catching these little interactions onscreen is part of what makes the whole thing worth living. Festivals curate expressions and emotions: a movie on it’s own is a flower, but a festival is a garden.
Despite my criticisms, Days of Wonder found a fanbase, winning Best Film Award on November 21st. Raisa Răzmeriță received the Jury Special Prize for Electing Ms Santa. As aforementioned, Edge of the Night received a commendation for photography; a deserved award. With any luck the standard will be continued at the 30th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, and hopefully I can be there in person.
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