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| Characters lurk in the shadows in Giordano Giulivi's The Laplace's Demon (2017) |
More frequently than not, Fantasia world premieres a unique cinematic gem that has been made with passion and wit, and flies under the radar of the films getting buzz during the festival circuit (including Sundance and SXSW). Giordano Giulivi's cerebral, vintage-look thriller
The Laplace's Demon is one of those rare finds that both dazzles the eye and tickles the mind with its innovative approach. The fact that the film took 7 years to make, and four years to shoot, makes it all the more special. One wishes that someone would stop throwing money at the Marvel Universe and give someone like Giulivi both the money and the time to make more cinematic art.
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| Karl's fascination with the ornate machinery of the mansion mirrors his experiments with determinism |
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I'm stealing from IMDB in my
plot synopsis, since frankly I'm not sure I can do it justice: "A glass in free fall. Have you ever thought if it is possible to
calculate into how many pieces it can break into? After numerous
experiments, a team of researchers succeeds in doing just this
apparently impossible task. Attracted to their experiment, a mysterious
professor invites the scientists in his isolated mansion to know more
about their studies. However, when they arrive, they are not greeted by
their host but they are faced with a strange model of the mansion, in
which some absolutely normal but incredible actions are acted. The
researchers will soon understand to be involved in a new experiment in
which they'll have to play a very different role than usual: that of the
glass in free fall."
Laplace was an actual 18th century French mathematician, physicist, and scholar, and the film focuses on his fascinating interest in the potential mathematical ability to predict human behavior via a specific formula. A crew of scientists set out to work with the mysterious Dr. Cornelius, but then quickly realize that they are imprisoned in his mansion and are unwillingly part of a nefarious experiment put forth by their absent host. The rich set pieces of the film's mise-en-scene are accentuated by the magnificent chiaroscuro lighting that heightens the film's tension, as the scientists realize that they are pawns in some deadly game.
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| The Laplace's Demon comes across as the lovechild of a noir Bava meets The Cat and the Canary |
The film plays with philosophical questions of free will and determinism, but does so by paying homage to a variety of film styles and eras. At times the film seems to play with silent film acting and gestures, while also employing many film noir stylistic flourishes. Further, the film's mood combines a 30's Universal monster vibe, while firmly taking place in the now (based on cellphones and computer technology). At the same time, some of the more deliberate editing choices hold on gazes often a bit too long, giving a taste of Lynch's
Eraserhead by way of Bava's
Black Sunday. The sometimes hyperbolic, yet dreamy, acting is also reminiscent of Guy Maddin's strange netherworlds. The film's timelessness really heightens its themes, and produces rich pleasures as it allows cinephiles to soak up the film's many references. Nevertheless, the film is really unique, and never too derivative, offering a nice little twist at the end and landing on a properly bleak note. I enthusiastically recommend
The Laplace's Demon, and hope you will search out this visually stunning and clever film.
