Container

Directed by Lukas Moodysson.
Written by: Lukas Moodysson
Produced by: Lars Jönsson
Memfis Film Sweden 2006 B/W 
Genre: Drama/ Poetry/ Experimental/ Art
Local distributor: Folkets Bio

Poetic, experimental and different, CONTAINER is described by Lukas Moodysson as "a black and white silent movie with sound" and with the following words; "A woman in a man's body. A man in a woman's body. Jesus in Mary's stomach. The water breaks. It floods into me. I can't close the lid. My heart is full".

Produced in both a Swedish and English-spoken version (voice by Jena Malone).

The film was shot in Tjernobyl, Transylvania, Trollhättan and elsewhere.

The theme of “Container” is in a way similar to “Fucking Åmål” told in a completely different way. The monologue is coming from a woman trapped in a man's body. It's about sexuality, about not fitting in. There are plenty of international pop-cultural references. Similar to “A hole in my heart” this displays both a fascination and ambivalence towards modern culture. This is a very contemporary piece of art – it doesn't feel pretentious at all, but very truthful and heartfelt. “Container” is like a poem with images. Lukas Moodysson returns to his poetic roots with "Container". The "flow of mind"-style monologue read throughout the film could easily have been taken from one of his books. Stylistic the film works better than "A hole in my heart". Completely silent black and white images are the backdrop of an almost whispering female monologue in Swedish or English. The Swedish language "feels" more like Moodysson's words and there are also some Swedish references that can’t be translated directly to English (but on the other hand people outside Scandinavia wouldn’t be able to relate to them so it’s better to use other words anyway). On the other hand it’s certainly not a second choice to hear the English version narrated by Jena Malone. Unlike “A hole in my heart” there are no "shock effects". There may be some parts of the monologue and images that are potentially disturbing, but it's more fun in a way than it is sickening. Except for a low hum near the end sound effects are non-existing (quite the opposite of “A hole in my heart”). The surround track simply places the female narrator in the middle of the room. The voice is rather monotonous and almost whispering. Together with the visual style this makes the film so calm that I sometimes drifted off into my own thoughts while watching. The film is rather short, 1 hour and 11 minutes – but due to the style it obviously feels longer. On the other hand, it’s never boring. The monologue never stops and you will be astonished that he actually has written the things that are said many times. The film is shot in black and white and the same grainy 16mm-look that “Fucking Åmål” had. It's a nice touch that even the Memfis logo has been made black and white for the occasion. The film opens with the complete credits so it can end with just a black screen. In a way the visual look is similar to “A hole in my heart”, but the editing is calm just like the audio and not fast-paced with many cuts. Sometimes I felt that the images could correspond better with the words – you could almost ignore the image altogether and just listen to the audio. A few times something referenced in the monologue turns up later on screen. A lot of the images and the words obviously don't make much sense, but it's simply a "flow of mind", so it's not supposed to make sense all the time either. I think this is a rather cool way of writing – more or less the way this review is written, even though it is edited – and I'm sure “Container” is too, even though it doesn't appear that way. It’s like instant messaging or simply your mind put on film – just a continuous stream of thoughts. I certainly hope more people will give “Container” a chance even though they were put off by “A hole in my heart”. Because this is something completely different and still a lot of the same – in a way “Container” is a resume of Lukas Moodysson’s work up until now, including his poetry.

Jena Malone
Mariha Åberg
Peter Lorentzon

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