Jon?’s review published on Letterboxd:
man, the anguish on display here. a somber symphony of a film. the struggle of an entire people can be seen in not just the faces of the family here, but also their movements. the argument in the kitchen is so very emotional. a scene of perfect acting, and perfectly restrained filmmaking, that moved me deeply. at times it felt like the camera itself is a character, odd considering nothing about this film is flashy in the slightest. yet nearly every shot can be studied, I’m in awe of what everyone here was able to accomplish. the filming of the flat lands where the apartments are, and how dilapidated buildings are shot. not like soulless poverty porn, but rather acknowledging that these are the skeletons of places that may have carried meaning at one time. this also does something with regards to depictions of relationships that I’d never been sure a film could really do: depicting the disintegration caused by the massive pressures of living in a society where it’s (unfortunately) necessary to struggle. where work is hard, and the rewards are meager. striving towards dreams that never come. the visual language throughout is stunning, which makes the bleak, and daringly uncertain, ending stand out even more. what more can be said than that final scene? a very special work of art.
(and that fingernails scene...)
' ].join(''); if ( adsScript && adsScript === 'bandsintown' && adsPlatforms && ((window.isIOS && adsPlatforms.indexOf("iOS") >= 0) || (window.isAndroid && adsPlatforms.indexOf("Android") >= 0)) && adsLocations && adsMode && ( (adsMode === 'include' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) >= 0) || (adsMode === 'exclude' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) == -1) ) ) { var opts = { artist: "", song: "", adunit_id: 100005950, div_id: "cf_async_e53e0e81-1c07-4416-a353-36d0e83f0c9d" }; adUnit.id = opts.div_id; if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } var c=function(){cf.showAsyncAd(opts)};if(typeof window.cf !== 'undefined')c();else{cf_async=!0;var r=document.createElement("script"),s=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];r.async=!0;r.src="//srv.tunefindforfans.com/fruits/apricots.js";r.readyState?r.onreadystatechange=function(){if("loaded"==r.readyState||"complete"==r.readyState)r.onreadystatechange=null,c()}:r.onload=c;s.parentNode.insertBefore(r,s)}; } else { adUnit.id = 'pw-e53e0e81-1c07-4416-a353-36d0e83f0c9d'; adUnit.className = 'pw-div -tile300x250 -alignleft -bottommargin'; adUnit.setAttribute('data-pw-' + (renderMobile ? 'mobi' : 'desk'), 'med_rect_btf'); if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', (event) => { adUnit.insertAdjacentHTML('afterend', kicker); window.ramp.que.push(function () { window.ramp.addTag('pw-e53e0e81-1c07-4416-a353-36d0e83f0c9d'); }); }, { once: true }); } } tag.remove(); })(document.getElementById('script-e53e0e81-1c07-4416-a353-36d0e83f0c9d'));
' ].join(''); if ( adsScript && adsScript === 'bandsintown' && adsPlatforms && ((window.isIOS && adsPlatforms.indexOf("iOS") >= 0) || (window.isAndroid && adsPlatforms.indexOf("Android") >= 0)) && adsLocations && adsMode && ( (adsMode === 'include' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) >= 0) || (adsMode === 'exclude' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) == -1) ) ) { var opts = { artist: "", song: "", adunit_id: 100005950, div_id: "cf_async_ceff4401-c123-409c-b0cd-4cef03caf824" }; adUnit.id = opts.div_id; if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } var c=function(){cf.showAsyncAd(opts)};if(typeof window.cf !== 'undefined')c();else{cf_async=!0;var r=document.createElement("script"),s=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];r.async=!0;r.src="//srv.tunefindforfans.com/fruits/apricots.js";r.readyState?r.onreadystatechange=function(){if("loaded"==r.readyState||"complete"==r.readyState)r.onreadystatechange=null,c()}:r.onload=c;s.parentNode.insertBefore(r,s)}; } else { adUnit.id = 'pw-ceff4401-c123-409c-b0cd-4cef03caf824'; adUnit.className = 'pw-div'; adUnit.setAttribute('data-pw-' + (renderMobile ? 'mobi' : 'desk'), 'sky_btf'); if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', (event) => { adUnit.insertAdjacentHTML('afterend', kicker); window.ramp.que.push(function () { window.ramp.addTag('pw-ceff4401-c123-409c-b0cd-4cef03caf824'); }); }, { once: true }); } } tag.remove(); })(document.getElementById('script-ceff4401-c123-409c-b0cd-4cef03caf824'));
