Review: In a world that is overloaded with information, in which we are able to observe infinite moments of joy, sorrow, pain and other countless human emotions, is it possible to compare each situation? Does each individual have the same intensity of emotional response or does the individual’s environment shape responses? Such philosophical questions are the thesis of Mikala Krogh’s, Everything is Relative. Structured around essential human emotions including love, illness and happiness, the film uses a multiplicity of individual experiences to construct an inclusive portrait of human desires and values. In the segment titled love, couples sit in front of a photographic backdrop and recount the circumstances that brought them together. While each story is different, there are similarities in the lives of couples when one examines the institution of marriage or partnership. All couples share comparable sentiments and experiences with their partners even though they live in diverse circumstances. The physical setting and the cinematography are skillfully applied to echo the shared human experience. While the film consists of a series of fragmented stories, it follows select individual narratives that continue to evolve through the different stages of human experience. In the sequence titled ‘illness’, a young Danish girl battling cancer prepares for chemotherapy. In a video diary she reveals deep fears and anger towards her condition. The scene cuts to a quiet graveyard in Mozambique as a family prepares to bury a dead relative. Faces gaze directly at camera and draw the viewer into their worlds through their long-held stares. The sequence is confronting and connects on an emotional level that makes words superfluous to convey the depth of emotion. The young girl returns later in the next segment titled ‘happiness’. After her treatment she loses her hair but feels happiness when she buys a wig. Her emotion is juxtaposed against the happiness felt by an American soldier returning from war and, in a bold sequence the euphoria felt by the winner of a TV singing competition in Africa. The viewer is presented with these materials and to a large degree is invited to personally interpret the individual stories. Just as the stories are unique, the perspective of the viewers is shaped by their unique circumstances. The film directs the viewer towards the context of each emotion through a brief narration and then presents a series of tableaus that often seem linked only by the most raw and basic human feeling. This is clear in the sequence tilted ‘loss’ A Dubai businessman loses his precious Audi TT in an accident, a Mozambique beauty queen is hurting after the loss of a beauty title, this in turn is juxtaposed with a scene showing people who lose their homes in a flood. The film asks, whose loss is greater? To the individual, his loss seems the most significant but in comparison to another, is it so? The film consists of observational and staged sequences, a complex visual style that supports the thematic content. Everything is Relative handles an abstract idea with skill and sensitivity, leaving the viewer reflecting on their own emotional self. Review by Shweta Kishore Informative: 1- the film explores philosophy and abstract emotions, no facts are presented at all Entertainment: 4- the experimental visual style and the structure of the film keep the viewer captivated Technical: 4- Formally unique, great use of setting and masterly editing Overall: 3.5- Well worth a look for its formal style and of course the complex issues handled with finesse.
Everything is Relative
Format: Theater Year: 2008 Running Time: 75 Min Distributor: SF Film Production ApS Producer: Christian Rank Director: Mikala Krogh Date Reviewed: 11-29-2008 Story: Do we all harbour the same feelings of sorrow, happiness, anger and love? Is the road to happiness always equally winding or straight? Do we love and hate with the same zeal? Are our values, dreams and hopes basically the same, merely mirroring our different lifestyles? "Everything is Relative" is a kaleidoscopic fusion of documentary sequences, archive material and tableau's of human beings. It seeks to portray how our reactions to challenges in life are relative to the conditions that guide our individual lives (Danish Film Institute).