directed by:
Dana Ziyasheva written by: Dana Ziyasheva genre: Sci-Fi |
What a trip! It’s about time we had an election between cats & dogs and settled this once and for all. I’ll admit, as I started to get into “GREATLAND,” I couldn’t figure out if I was going to be too woke for this film or not woke enough. The main character of Ulysses goes from being referred to as non-binary - to being referred to as a ‘young man’ within the first three minutes - which is probably just an oversight but an interesting one to occur so early on. There are a whole bunch of references to gender as “GREATLAND” gets going, and I had this sinking feeling that this could easily go the wrong direction for me - in terms of its politics. However, with its insane level of visual effects and bright colours, it seemed like there was plenty of reason to still have hope that this could turn out pretty cool. It wasn’t even, like, ten minutes in before it seemed like we were merging the worlds of Wes Anderson and George Orwell together in this completely odd & unique tale of love, coming of age, and sci-fi dystopia.
As the film continues, you’re introduced to ‘Mother’ – who is an omnipotent presence and you’ll see concepts such as how books have become feared items. You’ll see clever tie-ins like how young Ulysses is given a copy of “The Odyssey” by Homer, which, of course, features a main character that shares his name. There is blood, there is disease being spread through a virus, and there is theoretically nothing but love, positivity, and entertainment going on…which all leads to this extraordinary feeling of joy and dread that seem to coincide with each other at all times whilst you watch. The visual depictions of gender fluidity are so outrageously over the top that it’s beyond Bowie…and we can’t help but wonder what is really being said through the perspective, writing, and direction of Dana Ziyasheva. I’m not detecting anything that would be too offensive to either side of the fence, I suppose, but there’s also no question that Ziyasheva intended for this film and its concepts to be naturally unsettling. For a future and place that is supposed to be built on joy, again, you can’t help but feel like something is going to go terribly wrong. From the wild colours and visuals of the set - to the zany characters onscreen, it is very fair to say that you’re unlikely to see two films like “GREATLAND” within one lifetime. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I’ll let you be the judge and jury on that, but from my own point of view and perspective, I can appreciate anything that’s as proud to do things differently as Ziyasheva seems to be with this film. Is it going to make sense to everyone? Heck no! I think I was somewhere around the twenty-five-minute mark when I first thought about how impossible this movie would be to follow for more than half the potential audience watching it. Then I asked myself how much I thought that would matter with how much visual eye-candy was onscreen and how engaging it was. To me, it seems like there’s so much craziness goin’ on that you kinda can’t help but stick around to see where it all goes. “And SLAVE is short for?” “Support, love, appreciation, victory, empowerment.” Believe me, y’all, this is one seriously twisted tale, and I can promise that the bulk of you aren’t ready for it. That doesn’t have to be a bad thing, and I’m not suggesting you shouldn’t watch – I’m simply explaining that you couldn’t prepare yourself enough for this kind of bizarre cult film. You’ll see the characters doing their level best to experience joy, but at the same time, you can’t help but feel the weight of the impending doom of a virus that is lurking in the shadows. There is SO MUCH going on that it’s practically impossible to keep…umm…straight. There’s no doubt that “GREATLAND” has a point of view to share, which stresses the dangers and perils of going too far with the ideals of left-wing politics shown through a right-wing lens. Essentially, “GREATLAND” is what your uncle born in the 1940s fears the world is going to turn into…yet it still feels like there has to be a much greater point to all of this. Are there valid points being made regardless of what side of the political aisle you might fall on? Yes! Ultimately, you could look at “GREATLAND” as what happens with the dangers of excessive & obsessive behaviors and what happens when people surrender too much control to the powers that govern us. In the pursuit of creating a more tolerant and inclusive society, can we go too far? You have to wonder about that, and “GREATLAND” succeeds most when it’s making you consider these broader concepts. I don’t know that a lot of what it has to say doesn’t get lost in all the colours and craziness going on at the same time, but I feel like if you were to watch this film about ten times, you might actually start to get it. Do I want a future where ‘Mother’ is present at all times, watching our every move? F**k no! I come from a split family situation where I’ve already had FIVE moms in my lifetime, and I’ve yet to find one that offers the kind of comfort & care I genuinely wanted. This technologically inclined monstrosity of the future is like all of’em rolled into one, so believe me when I tell ya, it’s a hard pass from me, y’all.
So, look. You can’t watch “GREATLAND” and not acknowledge the fact that the amount of effort that has been put into the making of this film is outright STAGGERING. From the concept to the costumes, I’m tellin’ ya, all you’ll see is an extraordinary amount of effort that can’t possibly go unnoticed. The real question becomes whether or not it’s worth it, right? Isn’t that the question asked of all complex art? Is the fact that most of this movie’s concepts and ideas will fly right over the heads of a lot of people? To me, the answer to that is always HELL NO. The role of creators - and those brave enough to challenge what we know by showing us something we don’t fully understand - is absolutely crucial to our evolution. None of us might understand “GREATLAND” in full on a first watching…but we might catch a piece of what’s being said. The next time around, or in seeing something else that dives into similar concepts, we build on that piece…, and so on and so on; that’s how our evolution works. It’s not in gigantic leaps, but actually the tiniest of steps. I suppose I’m on the side of ‘as long as we get there in the end,’ then fabulous! As we witness the ‘felinist revolution’ and are introduced to the concept of being a ‘speciesist’ (think racist but with species), I think it’s fair to say that “GREATLAND” is built on the ideas of what identity is, and makes an argument for what could happen when we lose sight of who we are and what makes us that way. For a film that’s so far ahead in the future and deals with so many potentially progressive concepts, I don’t know if I was all that convinced that it didn’t still have a foot firmly set in the stone age. What I can say, without a doubt, is that “GREATLAND” is unquestionably memorable in just about every way you can think of. You don’t have to agree with everything you see in order to feel that way about it. On a technical level, Ziyasheva shows a tremendous amount of skill when it comes to how this movie is shot and what is shown to us. Ulysses, played by Arman Darbo, was fantastic – I thought that was a great character. I really enjoyed the concept of ‘Mother’ even if I feared her the entire time, and when we get introduced to Ulysses’ father, that’s a profound moment in this movie that makes us consider the information we’ve been given from yet another perspective all over again. There are a bunch of admirable qualities to “GREATLAND” that work out extremely well on an objective level, and it still gives you the opportunity to process what you see from your own individual perspective - without making too many definitive statements that would have people viewing this film from one single angle. Was I expecting Eric Roberts to pop up? No, but hey, why not at the point that he ends up onscreen? Do I think I know what “GREATLAND” is getting at? Yes – but I still feel like you could interpret it in a variety of ways. Objectively speaking, “GREATLAND” is a thought-provoking movie designed to spark debate. It’s going to be wildly extreme for many of us, but for others, they’ll see a movie that goes right where they think we’re already headed. I feel like we all know who we are & where we’ll fall within that spectrum. Could it be more clear or more cohesive? Sure, but show me a movie that would fit so snugly into the Cult section as this one does - that doesn’t have issues with clarity in the concepts or doesn’t wander too far off in this direction. “This spells the end of the current social contract – we must act now!” You feel the odd sense of panic from Ulysses’ father and how familiar it likely is…chances are, you know someone out there who sees the world around them evolving and leaving them behind, beyond their control, leaving them grasping at straws trying to hang onto what they know or at the very least, keep things in the status quo. We’re not living in that world, though – and the fact that “GREATLAND” has even been created as a concept for a movie confirms that. Its actual existence is confirmation that things are indeed changing and that folks are forced to come to grips with that in their own unique ways. I’d be happy with myself if I understood about 50% of what Ziyasheva wanted to communicate with this film, and I’m not entirely sure that I got there based on all that I saw. I’m not the brightest crayon in the box, though, y’all. There’s a good chance you’ll get more out of this than I did or feel like it’s saying something different than what I’ve come up with. All I can do is call things like I see’em, and this is a LOT to absorb. I’m going with three & a half stars out of five – “GREATLAND” will keep your eyes entertained and give you plenty to think about, even if you don’t fully understand it all. It’s basically a whole philosophy course inside of its length, so it will likely get a little long for many out there watching - because it’s an extraordinary amount of information to take in all at once. But regardless of how you feel about its politics, films like this contribute to our collective evolution by creating conversation, inviting debate, and daring to reveal their point of view. |
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