Review by John Adams

Hadn't I already earned my Long Duration Film Merit Badge when I saw Bela Tarr's 415-minute epic Satantango a year ago? Wasn't once enough? As it turned out, no it wasn't. If anything the second viewing was better than the first and I'm ready to watch it again. OK, I admit that the recent viewing was not all in one sitting but only for a couple hours a day over a week's time.

So what's the big deal with Satantango? I think it might come down to two things, time and texture. Tarr is a master of both. The first thing you notice in the film are the long (and I mean really long) shots. Scenes that would under normal cinematic pacing be done in seconds, Tarr does in 10 minute-long takes. "OK", you say to yourself, "I get the picture... he's walking away, the country is big.... come on, cut to the next scene." But from Tarr's perspective you've only got half the story. Yes, the man is walking, but it's a long lonely walk and it takes time for him to make his journey. Real things take time to happen.

Tarr's also has a habit of not cutting away when a character leaves a room. The door shuts, the room is empty but the scene rolls on... and on. Again I found myself looking at stuff I would have not noticed otherwise: a peculiar door knob, a water stain on the wall, chipped paint on the door. Meanwhile the sense of how empty the room is begins to bear down on you. The closed door in Tar's empty room stares back at us until it no longer emphasizes the point of having been closed but becomes the subject of the empty room and then Tarr cuts away. Brilliant!

Satantango is not for everyone, but if you have ever wondered what the difference is between art and mere entertainment, hold any of the summer's blockbuster films up to Satantango and see how it fares.

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