Ruben Östlund Marathon Part I of V
Ruben Östlund’s directorial debut is less so an overarching anthological narrative and more so a starter pack of scenes collected overtime, meant for demonstrating the filmmaker’s competence in constructing absurd human instances that fail to contradict though with how genuine and based in reality they seem because of their felicitously maladroit nature – don’t let that made-up town name it takes place in throw you off. Sure, it’s gimmicky with little return in sum, essentially a series of *somewhat* random slice-of-life moments that may or may not emit value individually depending on the viewer, yet it’s quite enjoyable when they do achieve their intended charm. It has a lo-fi Roy Andersson sensibility to it as well, abiding by the “still shot per scene” rule.
Verdict: B-
“The Guitar Mongoloid” is now available to stream on The Criterion Channel.
Burning the Celluloid 
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