Ok. So I
just explained how totally random my selection of films look to the untrained
eye. There is, however, a certain something that ties them together, although I
couldn’t quite tell you what it was. My… What? Outlook? Personality? Spirit? I’m
not sure. You’re going to have to fill in the blanks. But I think that this air
of chaos that actually has a connecting thread is a very fitting connection to
my first film. This film, to be precise. Exhibits seemingly is about a pretty random
collection of people. We are talking real life here, so it actually doesn’t get
stranger or more random than this. And yet… There is something… You might say I’m
romanticising. You might say it’s largely the fact that for this or that reason
(illness or old age) they are not quite “corpus mentis”. I’d say you’d need to
watch this beautiful gem of a documentary and make your own decision on the matter
– as it presents a LOT to think about…
The Castle
is a home for the elderly in Stupova, Slovakia. But aside from the elderly, it
also houses people with mental illnesses and those with nowhere else left to
go. Director Paolo Korec takes a closer look at some of the amazing and
touching life stories living together, higgledy piggledy under the same roof. There
is a once celebrated doctor of law, an ex-thief, an old soldier and an old man who
actually has nothing wrong with him – but his wife needs constant care you see,
so he just moved in. What was he to do? Go on without her?
I am a
little sensitive about the treatment of the aged. In life generally, but in
cinema especially. I’m not quite sure why, but it probably has a lot to do with
the fact that I was largely raised by my grandmother whose health is rather
frail these days (she is 90 years old). This is why I was intrigued to see how this
eccentric group of characters would be treated by this film. There is nothing
like a babbling old dear for comic relief after all. I think it is largely due to the fact that the
director Korec is also an older gentleman that there is a great air of
affection and respect to the film. Humour – especially absurd humour – is abundant
but very well placed. And you can easily glide through Exhibits without
thinking about much… Or can you?
Because the
moment you start dissecting the film, you realise that there are many sombre
lessons to actually take away from it. I was touched by all the stories in
varying ways, but the one that hit me the hardest was Classic (he now calls
himself that) the lawyer. He was an actual lawyer you understand; a scholar of
some fame and author of three text books in various areas of law. We do not learn
how he came to be a permanent resident in Stupova. But there are still echoes
of his previous life in his actions there. He has a planner in which he makes
his weekly schedule, although it must be said, it now looks pretty different
from what it once must have looked like… A lot of his day is now taken up by
music, he is a great fan of a Slovakian pop- star (whose name I forgot to make
a note of) and sneaks into the common room after dark to watch her DVDs and
likes to sing along to her songs on his cd player. In the q &a after the
film, this story in particular came up in the discussions. Korec pointed out
that this story had touched him as well and remarked how important it is to
remember that the line between sanity and insanity is very thin indeed. I
wonder if Classic himself remembers when and how he crossed it? Ages are not
discussed that much in the Castle, but I put Classic in his late 40s or early
50s at the most. If ever there were a reminder that you never know what’s round
the corner for you, this story is it…
So the film
takes us from one “exhibit” to the next, each told with clarity and honesty. No
punches are pulled about life in the Castle. It is not the lap of luxury but it
could be so much worse. The doctors and nurses are pleasant. There is good food
and good company. And since a very large number of the residents have actually
reverted to their childhoods (with the ironic exception of Classic who, is one
of the younger residents but I saw as closer to a teenager), “the rest”, does not really matter… I don’t
know about you, but I found it spooky yet strangely comforting. They have lost
pretty much everything, but much like children, they have stopped focusing on
the bigger picture and are delighted or made distraught by the smaller things in
life… I don’t know… Don’t you find the idea of people of all walks of life united
“at the end of it all”, like happy children comforting in a way? And don’t you
think it’s rather silly to wait right until the very end to start making the
little things in life if not your main priority, one of your priorities?
Oh yes.
Exhibits looks like a humble, unassuming little 80 minute number about an old
people’s home. Trust me, there is a LOT more to it than that…
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