Problematic father figures and a pill-pushing doctor lead a Danish man into darkness in Isabella Eklof's powerful drama echoing with colonial conflict.
Jan is on the run from himself and his traumas after being sexually abused by his father. Now he lives with his family in Nuuk, Greenland, where he works as a nurse and does his best to assimilate into the local community. However, his past catches up with him through a letter from his now dying father, plunging him into a downward spiral of drugs and extramarital affairs. Emil Johnsen is captivating in the lead role, portraying Jan as both boyishly fragile and deeply unsettling. Haunted by his own father figure he's reflecting Denmark's paternalistic relationship with Greenland and its population. Isabella Eklof follows up her acclaimed debut (Holiday, GFF 2018) with a courageous exploration of human darkness, based on Kim Leine's autobiography, solidifying her position as one of our most exciting Nordic directors.
源自:https://program.goteborgfilmfestival.se/en/program/kalak
Set at the start of Covid, Family Portrait follows a family on an idle but hectic morning when they have planned a group picture. When the mother vanishes and one daughter becomes desperate to find her and gather her sprawling family, the film progressively descends into a realm where time and space lose their grip, transforming the family portrait into a solemn and enigmatic ritual of transition.
Director's Note:
Family photographs, according to Roland Barthes, are a desperate means to freeze time and immortalize the family. However, what the family doesn’t realize yet is that, as they smile and pose for the picture, they have already died.
源自:https://www.locarnofestival.ch/festival/program/film.html?fid=e3a878c3-ae17-4570-9736-2c37b917128a