An elderly shepherd living in a hilltop village in Italy spends his days tending to his goat herd among the rolling hills passing mounds used to make charcoal, before retiring to bed, drinking a strange powder which we can presume he takes for the hope of relieving some of the symptoms of his illness. Later we learn the powder is dust swept from the church, which he exchanges for goats milk.
As the village prepares for a parade for a saint, the shepherds dog harangues the locals who pass it, barking furiously and eventually causing a small van to crash into the goat pen letting the herd loose through the village as the dog strives to get 'his' job done as the shepherd seems to have slept in. We later discover the man has died. But life goes on and with a nanny goat giving birth the shepherd is perhaps reborn. The white kid stands out among the other young goats that are to start kept in the pen whilst the adults go to graze. Left to their own devices, anything and everything becomes something of intrigue and just like children, the kids investigate all.
Eventually, the kids get to join the adults grazing, but the young white kid gets separated and as the seasons suddenly change, we presume the young goat dies at the base at a vast pine tree. And there the cycle continues as the tree is felled for another celebration in the village. Eventually the tree is cut into pieces and a new mound is made, with the wood placed inside to make a new batch of charcoal. When ready, the charcoal is divvied up and given to the locals.
This exquisite Italian film tells a story of life; it is a slow, yet beguiling film, one that easily can alienate as much as be utterly embraced. The narrative is bare, but there is one and even without dialogue the film has much to say. The beginning with the elderly man sets a slow pace that is broken upon his death. His sheepdog steels the film within the remarkable single camera scene where he tries in vain to draw attention to the fact the shepherd has failed to rise. As locals run from the dog fearing he is just vicious, the dog pulls a rock wedged under the tire of a small van sending it crashing into the goat pen. The control of the dog is superb, brilliantly funny, yet devastating as we realise something must be wrong.
As we progress into the next segment, animals again steal the film as we spend time within the herd of goats. There is something both engrossing and enjoyable watching these animals and the kids are a sheer delight, full of childlike inquisitive and playful, the intimacy in watching them at close quarters is actually quite moving. The later part of the film slows again as the village prepares the tree which then becomes part of the lengthy although fascinating process of making charcoal.
Sprinkled with wonderful humour, such as the scene where the shepherd having taking all precautions to keep them in the pot, returns home to find the snails he collected all over the kitchen having escaped or just the humour of the animals involved. This joy is coupled with almost heartbreaking sadness, the dog striving to do his job without his master or the notion that dust from the church somehow contains a 'holy' ingredient that aides illness. It is a film that will divide audiences, but for a film that really tells a very simple story without doing very much it manages to convey so with profound beauty and emotion.
More of my reviews at iheartfilms.weebly.com
As the village prepares for a parade for a saint, the shepherds dog harangues the locals who pass it, barking furiously and eventually causing a small van to crash into the goat pen letting the herd loose through the village as the dog strives to get 'his' job done as the shepherd seems to have slept in. We later discover the man has died. But life goes on and with a nanny goat giving birth the shepherd is perhaps reborn. The white kid stands out among the other young goats that are to start kept in the pen whilst the adults go to graze. Left to their own devices, anything and everything becomes something of intrigue and just like children, the kids investigate all.
Eventually, the kids get to join the adults grazing, but the young white kid gets separated and as the seasons suddenly change, we presume the young goat dies at the base at a vast pine tree. And there the cycle continues as the tree is felled for another celebration in the village. Eventually the tree is cut into pieces and a new mound is made, with the wood placed inside to make a new batch of charcoal. When ready, the charcoal is divvied up and given to the locals.
This exquisite Italian film tells a story of life; it is a slow, yet beguiling film, one that easily can alienate as much as be utterly embraced. The narrative is bare, but there is one and even without dialogue the film has much to say. The beginning with the elderly man sets a slow pace that is broken upon his death. His sheepdog steels the film within the remarkable single camera scene where he tries in vain to draw attention to the fact the shepherd has failed to rise. As locals run from the dog fearing he is just vicious, the dog pulls a rock wedged under the tire of a small van sending it crashing into the goat pen. The control of the dog is superb, brilliantly funny, yet devastating as we realise something must be wrong.
As we progress into the next segment, animals again steal the film as we spend time within the herd of goats. There is something both engrossing and enjoyable watching these animals and the kids are a sheer delight, full of childlike inquisitive and playful, the intimacy in watching them at close quarters is actually quite moving. The later part of the film slows again as the village prepares the tree which then becomes part of the lengthy although fascinating process of making charcoal.
Sprinkled with wonderful humour, such as the scene where the shepherd having taking all precautions to keep them in the pot, returns home to find the snails he collected all over the kitchen having escaped or just the humour of the animals involved. This joy is coupled with almost heartbreaking sadness, the dog striving to do his job without his master or the notion that dust from the church somehow contains a 'holy' ingredient that aides illness. It is a film that will divide audiences, but for a film that really tells a very simple story without doing very much it manages to convey so with profound beauty and emotion.
More of my reviews at iheartfilms.weebly.com