Morvern CallarMorvern Callar is an aimless young woman reacting to the unimaginable. She is impulsive, as young people tend to be, and takes actions that seem horrific but make perfect sense for her. The film does not have a traditional plot which is perfect because Morern would never be part of a traditional story. She does not do beginnings, middles, and ends. She starts new beginnings while the middles are still playing out. We follow her ambled and confused attempt to direct her life in the aftermath of tragedy.
The film is visually stunning. It starts with a blood-stained floor and carries that blood-red motif throughout. Morvern wears read in nearly every scene. She is literally stained with blood in some. Like Lady Macbeth before her, much of the film is her attempt to remove that blood, or at least, forget about it.
It also uses diegetic sound to perfection. It has no score and no soundtrack. It's totally silent more often than not. However, it is injected with great music, most often when Morvern is listening to one of her Christmas gifts. It gives every song an eerie undertone.
Samantha Morton plays the title character and gives one of the best performances I have seen this decade. She is so expressive. She says very little throughout the entire film but we know exactly what she is thinking. When she is interacting we can tell she still has not found her social legs. She is awkward and unsure of what to say. She had not developed her moral compass. She is not a bad person, but she is not good either.
Surely one of the best of the decade.
Thanks to W@W's top 100 list for introducing me to this film
Grade:
A