Divine Intervention
Picture: B-
Sound: B- Extras: C+ Film: B-
Elia Suleiman is trying something few directors attempt,
an existential comedy not unlike what David O. Russell recently pulled off with
I “Heart” Huckabees (reviewed elsewhere on this site). Divine Intervention (2002) is a
unique, interesting, clever and comic look at the problems and divisions of
religion and disharmony in The Middle East.
The film becomes a series of somewhat related vignettes
about the discomfort and especially about silence. That sometimes means the calm before the storm, but the outbursts
are not what you would expect, instead being of the absurd and comic
variety. Yet, this is not a comedy,
though it uses humor and juxtaposition to make the audience think about why the
ugly realities of war, civil war, terrorism, racism and hate have to go on when
most grown adults should know better.
That is why it has become such a celebrated film. The title does not mock anything, except to
ask it here is a singular Semite God, what is all the fuss about?
You can be an atheist and appreciate the film, though not
all the absurdity and humor always works, while the many silent stretches are
more effective and interesting than most filmmakers could have pulled off. I thought of Jacques Tati as I watched some
of these scenes, though it never takes off in the more existentialist direction
his best work did. What we do get is an
important film in its time about the human condition and long-running world
events that are coming to a boil. That
is why Divine Intervention is worth your time.
The anamorphically enhanced 1.85 X 1 image was shot by
cinematographer Marc-André Batigne and shows he has a fine grasp of screen
space and comic timing. Like Robert
Richardson on Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill, Batigne’s camera is
energetic, aggressive and goes out of its way to show this world. Color is solid and consistent, while
definition is better than usual for a foreign film. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo has Pro Logic surrounds and sounds
good, which makes sense, as it was a Dolby analog SR release. Extras include an extensive interview with
Suleiman (nearly 42 minutes) where he offers his thoughts on the film, actors,
audience and cinema today. This is
interesting. You also get two trailers
for the film, one U.S., the other French.
- Nicholas Sheffo
