Reality. In a Dublin gallery, there are no cunning sculptures, and the thoughts of George Bernard Shaw, who says "you use a glass mirror to see your face; you use works of art to see your soul". Reality as a cinema. At a Swedish museum before an exhibition, a curator tries to explain to a journalist what art really is in conversation about the upcoming exhibition. The curator is a hero in the latest film by Swedish director Ruben Östlund , who, in an attempt to laugh at contemporary western European principles, turns the Square into a true piece of art. Ruben Östlund discovers the cinema, filming sketches, with which he was later admitted to Gothenburg to follow the cinema. He is known mainly from his previous project, becoming one of the favorites at the Cannes Film Festival in 2014 "Force Majeure". The action of the film is centered on an avalanche family, whereby the husband decides to seek personal salvation instead of being concerned about the security of his whole family. The film won the jury award. "The Square" manages to win the Golden Palm in 2017. His next film is expected in 2020, named "The Triangle of Sorrow". Geometric references are a coincidence, not a connection.

The exhibition was at the beginning. Oh really.

In 2014, Yostulnd co-produced with producer Kale Böhmann worked on an art installation at the private Swedish museum Vandalorum. What would the review be without mentioning "The Square" manifesto? Probably empty and unfinished. "The Square" is a shelter of trust and sharing. Within its borders, we all share the same rights and obligations. In fact, the idea of ​​the two was born by their curiosity what would happen if every city has a free zone where everyone can go and the rest are obliged to help. To be reminded of the possibility of taking responsibility. What Happens - Concerts, Marriage Suggestions. But also a place for protests; after shooting in a Swedish school students from the city gather together to be together there.

Back to the movie

Delicacy, northern cold, a significant dose of sarcasm, a repulsive reality. This is served in the atypical for the contemporary time tolerance of the content consumer 2 hours and 31 minutes. However, no moment of the film is empty and unnecessary or annoying. The action unfolds somewhat, but everything happens quickly. Layered stories that are entwined in an intriguing way so that there is no sense of general fragmentation and fragmentation. Cinematography goes hand in hand with the surreal events in history. Operator Fredrik Wenzel tells and does not need words. The sense of infinity, cyclicality, distance is transmitted through a series of techniques that create a sense of indecency, complementing and accentuating the abyss between the rich and the poor; civilized and uncivilized. Mastering is the way in which the problems of inequality and lack of care for the other are put in a society that educates and proudly achieves liberal values ​​and ideals; lost trust in the other; the inability to express and express sincere emotions in the era of triumphant individualism. It seems as though the rebuke of the cultural elite (in Sweden) will be in the focus of history, but the plot is far more profound and rotated. The goal is not to make the viewer feel comfortable and comfortable. Exactly the opposite. Ruben Östlund himself states that his films are sociological experiments and he likes to put people in situations where they fail.

The main actor is Christian (Clyans Beng). The charismatic curator, whose life is mysterious but also very simple and predictable. Because it's kind of a norm. His mind is centered on the promotion of an exhibition focusing on forgotten tolerance and concern for the other. In his life, however, he does not easily perform what the utopian free zone of the square preaches. She is a victim of a robbery, trying to help a woman screaming for help at a square in Stockholm. And he decides to seek revenge for the robbery. His brilliant life is dark. His ego is hurt, and the outcome turns out to be using desperate means, searching for the criminal. Using tracking technology, he locates the location of his lost items. The plan is a fool of his subordinate. The place is in the suburbs of Stockholm, where there is no chance anyone will know who Christian is, although it is a public figure. Satisfied and happy, exalted, the two go to give justice, driving wildly Tesla to social housing. An endless tunnel connects the two worlds. Guilty to the contrary. Everyone in the building is the potential criminal. Christian puts a letter in the mailbox of every resident, inviting him to return what he is. Especially important are the cuffs given by his grandfather. He subsequently gets his belongings. Together with several others. A real gain, however, is the enemy you create in the face of a little boy who looks like an immigrant, but is he? Ruben Östlund says it is not clear whether he is an immigrant or not. Is he himself politically correct or simply crafted with the audience and avoids taking responsibility for what he himself has created?

By placing community and responsibility at the center, the film is valuable for its social message. Delicately rebutting the unpleasant consequences of the illusion of self-sufficiency and mistrust; hatred of the other. Inviting to quietly pay attention to the essence of sharing, empathy, living together and finding the human. Disturbing with finesse, boundless egotism and fear, false tamedness, and the delusion of accepting what is not normal. Inviting a refined to forget about the ugliness of impatience to the stigmatized as uncivilized. In the case of "The Square" , no art is needed to see our souls, but rather humanity.

image source: 1, 2