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I'll be completely fucking honest here, why
not? Upon the first thirty minutes of this film, I was preparing to bash
this movie from here to Tuesday. I was going to tear this up like a
monkey on a cupcake. But then oddly, I stopped, thought, and completely
re-examined "Death of the Seasons."
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And I realized I hated it for
what it was trying to do. It was trying to be different, and
the feelings of hatred were actually not all passionate.
It's not a perfect film, but it's not awful.
In fact it's pretty good. I won't lie to you
"Death of Seasons" is an acquired taste. It's an original
film built around philosophy, studies of theology, and a
character who thinks of himself as a psychological
superhero. |
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Much of the direction behind Baroni’s
film is fantastic, as he jumps from style to style providing
interesting contrasts, stark visuals of color and black and white
and a really intense guerilla style of camera work that brings us in
a little closer to the conversations between characters. The acting
is solid, and White manages to bring the cast at definite highs of
performances that brings “Death of Seasons” into a different plain
than a simple art house drama.
As much as I would have loved to enjoy
“Death of Seasons” much more, White’s film strives for originality and
yet can never seem to shake off the false pretensions it stirs behind
every scene. Every conversation has the ability to suck audiences in,
yet we’re stuck watching this through awfully disingenuous characters
that never jump off the screen. Even Delfo Baron playing the title
character Gabriel Seasons, never brings the character over to our side
and helps us relate to him. He considers himself a philosophic and
psychological avenger who feels he has to help others find the right
path, and yet, he’s never human. Just a concept.
White's "Death of Seasons" is a mixed bag. While the characters never
feel as genuine or deep as they should be, there's also a great amount
of originality and insight into this drama. White seeks to build a
different kind of film, one that invokes thought, and that has to be
appreciated.
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