★★★★½
Rosebush Pruning is a compelling, character-driven narrative, an arthouse film presented as an erotic family drama.
The beauty of the film is that it exists and plays so well in both of those worlds without ever fully leaving the other.
“The beauty of the film is that it exists and plays so well in both of those worlds without ever fully leaving the other.”
Telling the story of a dysfunctional and incredibly rich family who live out in the mountains. Far enough away from society to be completely withdrawn from societal norms, yet close enough to engage with the world and live a lavish and fabulous lifestyle.
Efthimis Filippou pens the script, which is a reimagining of Marco Bellocchio’s Fists in the Pocket.
The perfect blend of arthouse, character study, and family drama. Capturing and utilizing the metaphorical comparison between the life of humans and the life of plants: that pruning is necessary for growth and survival.
From an artistic standpoint, the approach of comparing life to a plant—the process of a plant’s life, cutting the leaves off until it’s fully grown so it can spend all its energy on growing and developing rather than trying to blossom buds, hindering its growth.
Utilizing that philosophy, Filippou’s script takes us down the rabbit hole and shows us what that means firsthand. For Jack is the family favorite; all his siblings love him the most and desire his attention. Even the father holds him in the highest regard.
Jack is the one who always puts the family first, over everything. Even his own life. He allows the leaves—his siblings and father—to drink him dry, taking everything he has to offer and then some. Keeping him from growing, from taking said energy and using it to allow himself to grow.
“Jack is the one who always puts the family first, over everything. Even his own life.”
For the character insight is the height of the film and what really drives it. While there is an enticing storyline, it’s the characters that drive it.
All the siblings are complex, deeply damaged, and longing for something more. Going beyond the typical rich kid who has everything given to them, so they need something extreme to feel.
It’s more rooted and twisted than most audiences are accustomed to. Leaning heavier into the Oldboy world of cinema rather than the latter, a Hollywood production.
While the script lavishes in twisted and psychological mind games, its content and subject matter are something that will most likely turn off the masses. While incest was common on one of the biggest shows in the last decade, the presentation was completely different, creating a different tone and baseline.
Karim Aïnouz’s vision of the film, while not flawless, was incredibly close. The lens in which he uses to focus on the characters and their dysfunctional family is more insightful and meaningful rather than grand and bold.
Game of Thrones used it as a plot point in establishing the antagonist of the show, and their incest child was portrayed to be one of the most hated characters in television history.
Here, the characters aren’t meant to be hated or despised. While Jack and Martha are the true protagonists of the film, the siblings aren’t established to be hated or disliked. Even the father isn’t supposed to be loathed.
Aïnouz crafts the film brilliantly to showcase that while the actions are grotesque, almost all of the characters do it for righteous reasons, or so they believe.
“While the actions are grotesque, almost all of the characters do it for righteous reasons, or so they believe.”
The angle and insight aren’t quite the same as Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, but I would put the film in the same realm as it.
Hélène Louvart’s cinematography is simply mesmerizing. From the opening shot, the film gives us so much and discloses a lot.
While the opening beach scene is gorgeous and magical, the beach itself is so well captured that it has this artificial sense to it. Even the sand looks unreal due to how it’s captured.
A meaningful intent, one that I believe is completely intentional. Offering an insight from the opening shot: that while everything looks amazing and unbelievably dreamlike, nothing is quite as it seems.
Throughout the film as a whole, the shots are intentional, not only to create a visual of the story, but to use the camera to craft an emotional push and undertone to what is beneath the surface level. Accompanied by a stellar score by Matthew Herbert.
The film gives us some of the best performances of an ensemble in some time. Everyone delivers in this film. Elle Fanning gives another outstanding performance. Callum Turner offers one of the best performances of his career. Jamie Bell, Riley Keough, Lukas Gage, and Tracy Letts also deliver flawless performances, which are the backbone of the film.
The characters are what drive the film; the actors are what make the drive possible.
Rosebush Pruning is a film that is beautifully crafted, with an insightful script that is both intriguing and well executed. With outstanding performances. A complex, character-driven film that I believe will have a stronger second life and find its audience outside of the mainstream circuit.
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