Sixteen-year-old Jeanne (Clara Pacini) runs away from an orphanage in the mid-1970s. On the telephone, one of the child residents begs her to return. Jeanne comforts her: “eat all of your food and I swear you that I’ll return”. That’s an empty promise. The adolescent is hellbent on evading the institution, and prepared to take several risks. She assumes a new identity after stealing the documents from an older girl called Bianca. She hitchhikes with a lorry driver, only to run away in panic after the man makes an unexpected detour. Finally, she finds refuge in a large film studio, where a large film crew are shooting fantasy film The Snow Queen.
At first, Jeanne remains firmly hidden, while quietly observing the developments through gaps and peepholes. Eavesdropping and secret observation are recurring devices in the filmography of the 53-year-old French director. As is the topic of young females living inside a closely-knit institution (her debut feature Innocence, from 2021, takes place inside a private school for girls). Jeanne becomes fascinated with Cristina (Marion Cotillard), the protagonist of the movie being made. The beautiful woman is never satisfied with how she looks on screen, at times degrading her own performance. She complains: “How could I act properly with so much light on my face?”. Her cocky behaviour makes her unpopular with other actors, particularly the young supporting player Chloe.
Cristina rightfully earns the reputation of tyrannical diva. She is full control of the film set. Her power displays include absurd antics, such as some Ozzy Osbourne-inspired interaction with a crow. Her attitude is so formidable that even the bird obeys her, proceeding to attack people on cue, occasionally drawing some blood (maybe a nod to Hitchcock’s Birds, from 1963?). The film director (played by a heavily moustached and shades-wearing Gaspar Noe, a real-life filmmaker and also the husband of Hadžihalilović) barely interferes with the star of his movie, allowing her whims to prevail. Cristina eventually uncovers Jeanne, and the two immediately bond. She demands unconditional love from her much younger, newfound friend, and proposes that they do something that will change their lives forever. Fandom, obsessive behaviour, sorority and love are mixed together to hazardous and potentially explosive results.
This very gloomy and slow movie blends fantasy with arthouse devices. The texture of the film is virtually identical to the film-within-the-film: grainy, sombre, with dark hues, often bordering on the monochromatic. This enables Hadžihalilović to moves seamlessly between the two movies, and to play deftly with meta-textuality. The director stays loyal to the aesthetic of her previous creations, oscillating between the gloomy and the atmospheric. On the other hand, the story is just too cryptic for its own sake, inevitably lapsing into monotony. The Ice Tower is an ice-cold fairytale of sorts. A beautifully conceived story that will not melt your heart.
The Ice Tower premiered in the Official Competition of the 75th edition of the Berlin International Film Festival, when this piece was originally written. Also showing at Sarajevo, MOTELX, San Sebastian, and the BFI London Film Festival. In cinemas on Friday, November 21st. On VoD on Tuesday, January 20th.
