I must admit upfront being disappointed, finding this film less interesting than I had assumed beforehand. There is too much emphasis on the landscapes (not a surprise, the film maker is a photographer by profession), and much too sketchy about the people we meet. There is some welcome humor, we see people interact with animals and the unfriendly environment they live in, both always welcome ornaments as icing on the cake. In other words, not everything is lost when sitting through this film.
Emo is the trait-d-union for most of the stories we hear and see while underway. Some of the stories are stand-alone, however, like the water truck driver. Moreover, the sequencing of the stories is illogical and not consistent with Emo's journey. Some stories are cut too short, like the sheep and their shepherds caught in heavy rainfall. Similarly cut short was the story about the bride who had to choose a marriage candidate, and was obviously attracted to Emo who was passing by, but Emo fled from the scene for reasons unknown.
All the above may be considered minor observations, but worse is that I found the stories on itself not too interesting. I may have missed important clues, however, like the opening scene were a young boy mistakes the salt for snow, and declares this to be the last time he is deceived. And why is the water truck loosing water all the time, and are we kept in the dark about where he is planning to deliver what remains in his tank?? Maybe some symbolism that I missed??
I admit to have assumed too much after reading the synopsis. I expected something along the line of my positive experience with Bardsongs (2010, Sander Francken). The latter had fewer stories, but all were neatly covered and brought interesting insights in other people's customs or demonstrations of wisdom in earthly matters. In my reviews of the Ghent film festival I took the liberty to compare them with the well-known parables of the New Testament. With "Tales on the Wind", however, we do not get sufficient chance to delve deeper in the hearts and minds of the people we see passing by. That is a pity, as I always welcome fresh insights in other civilizations and customs. The landscapes and the tumbleweeds are a nice addition, but don't provide for sufficiently interesting material, at least not for me.
Emo is the trait-d-union for most of the stories we hear and see while underway. Some of the stories are stand-alone, however, like the water truck driver. Moreover, the sequencing of the stories is illogical and not consistent with Emo's journey. Some stories are cut too short, like the sheep and their shepherds caught in heavy rainfall. Similarly cut short was the story about the bride who had to choose a marriage candidate, and was obviously attracted to Emo who was passing by, but Emo fled from the scene for reasons unknown.
All the above may be considered minor observations, but worse is that I found the stories on itself not too interesting. I may have missed important clues, however, like the opening scene were a young boy mistakes the salt for snow, and declares this to be the last time he is deceived. And why is the water truck loosing water all the time, and are we kept in the dark about where he is planning to deliver what remains in his tank?? Maybe some symbolism that I missed??
I admit to have assumed too much after reading the synopsis. I expected something along the line of my positive experience with Bardsongs (2010, Sander Francken). The latter had fewer stories, but all were neatly covered and brought interesting insights in other people's customs or demonstrations of wisdom in earthly matters. In my reviews of the Ghent film festival I took the liberty to compare them with the well-known parables of the New Testament. With "Tales on the Wind", however, we do not get sufficient chance to delve deeper in the hearts and minds of the people we see passing by. That is a pity, as I always welcome fresh insights in other civilizations and customs. The landscapes and the tumbleweeds are a nice addition, but don't provide for sufficiently interesting material, at least not for me.
