The old Petrija observes retouched photos from her past and remembers her life in a village: as a young woman, the illiterate Petrija marries Dobrivoja, but his mother doesn't like her. Petrija becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son in a barn, but doesn't cut the umbilical cord for the entire day becuase she waits for her mother-in-law to do it, so the baby dies. Her daughter dies from a disease. Thinking she is cursed, Dobrivoja divorces her. Petrija works as a waitress in a pub owned by Ljubiša. She marries Misa, but he has an accident in a local coal mine, and his leg is left damaged, so he limps with a crane. He later has a stroke and dies. When the coal mine is closed, the railway is dismantled, and thus Petrija stays living alone in the desolate farm.
1980 was a great year for burly actor Pavle Vuisic, who starred in two movies that were included in a local poll as among the top ten films in Serbia of the 20th century: comedy "Who's That Singing Over There?" and drama "Petria's Wreath". The latter is a somber, astringent and meditative rural drama that builds its repertoire on emotions and drama, but luckily avoids pathetic melodrama, and does that with concise elegance, whereas the main actress Mirjana Karanović is excellent in the leading role. Several segments are symbolic and tie the private life of the heroine with historic moments. For instance, the World War II period is marked by death and bad luck—Petrija gives birth in a barn, but doesn't cut the umbilical cord for hours, so the baby dies. She carries her second child while soldiers fight in the village and explosions are seen in the background, but the child dies from diptheria. The post-war era becomes a sort of reconstruction era for not only the village, but also for her, when she divorces and starts a new beginning as a waitress, hired by Ljubiša (Vuisic).
There is a phenomenal dialogue that he says when she asks him why he drinks so much, and he explains his misery: "You are not the only one with a problem. Everyone has one. Me and my life have gone our separate ways. Me here, he there. My wife died, the kids left, and my life goes somewhere over there, passing me by". This scene is filmed in the tavern, with him sitting in dark, and her standing on the light of the door, to show his nihilism and her uplifting energy. In this segment, Ljubiša is a wealthy owner of the tavern, but then young Communists smash the place claiming he is a capitalist, so he has to close it and leave—a remarkably well done critique of Communism. The final third of the film is a lot weaker, though, and plays out almost like a soap opera. Not even the sudden surreal moments of Petrija having brief visions of her dead child and dead husband lead to much and feel somewhat underdeveloped and misplaced. The finale is thus a letdown, without much creativity, but that still does not detract from the wonderful film language with enough valuable lyrical moments up to that point.
Grade:+++
No comments:
Post a Comment