Film Review: Thelma (2017)
Review
It's hard not to be intrigued by a film that begins with a scene of a father aiming a hunting rifle at the back of his unsuspecting daughter's head instead of the dear in the distance. This is precisely the beginning of the Norwegian drama/thriller, Thelma, a film named after the young girl in question who is the protagonist of the story. Fast forward a few years and Thelma finds herself in a university, living what appears to be a very normal life. Attending classes, spending time in the library and keeping constant contact with, what appears to be, very loving parents. But one particular day would be the first of a series of bizarre occurrences, starting with the strange behavior of a murder of crows that start flying into the window of the library she studies in, triggering an epileptic seizure in Thelma that stumps the doctors that she visits once it subsides.
Days after the episode, Thelma is approached by a young lady name Anja, a fellow university student that was present during Thelma's episode. The two would eventually become friends, and Anja would introduce Thelma to the other side of university life, the life concerned more with drinking, smoking, dancing and socializing as a whole. But these activities would be done with a certain degree of guilt on Thelma's part, given her conservative Christian upbringing, and the expectations of her parents. The stress felt by social pressures and her new friendship with Anja that turns more romantic, leads to more seizures and bizarre events.
Regardless of the numerous tests, Thelma's condition doesn't seem to suggest normal epilepsy but seems to be pointing to the possibility of suppressed trauma. As the film progresses, it appears that Thelma can will her desires, both deep-seated and surface level, into existence, something the film flashes back to by looking at moments of her childhood. It appears her fears are, somewhat, confirmed when she discovers that her grandmother, whom she presumed was dead, is found in a special psychiatric institution, apparently having claimed to be able to do the same thing. The film provides a dual experience of the two perspectives of the events brought on by Thelma's seizures. On the one hand, her subjective point of view translates the events into supernatural occurrences with a divine tone, while from the outside, the seizures are just natural phenomena brought on by reactions to specific stimuli.
What filmmaker, Joachim Trier, does well is create an experience where the audience becomes more involved in the film. Those watching will feel as lost and confused as Thelma at the series of events that take place over the two hours run time, and Thelma's discoveries and experiences are indeed a shared experience, even the moments in the hospital where doctors must induce an epileptic seizure, makes audiences feel like they will experience one too, from all the flashing lights, which makes this a good time to warn anyone with photosensitivity to give this film a skip.
The film makes excellent work of sharp transitions, snapping scenes together like a hypnotist snapping his fingers to awaken his volunteers from their slumber. The film's camera work is impressive and highly effective, sometimes slowly zooming in or focusing on parts of the sets, creating an anxious tone that works to create an ongoing feeling of unease and suspense. Interestingly enough, this is also a film that got my attention with its foley work, which is to say the sound effects that we hear in a film, from the loud steps on a wooden floor to the sound of flapping wings or water crashing onto the shore, crew members known as foley artists behind the scenes performs all these. The interesting part is that people will often say that if one can notice the work of the foley artist, it usually means that they are not doing a good job, but that not what I'm saying at all. The ruffle of a bag being taken off or the sound the water makes as Thelma swims through it, all amplified the overall tone for me, and I suggest watching the following video to have your mind blown with this particular profession.
Having said that, the film started on a very intriguing note and it unfolded slowly with a slow and sinister feel. Unfortunately, I did feel that the pacing could've been better; the film drags on without providing enough payoffs throughout, leaving the sense of excitement to dissipate slowly into mild disappointment. More context of Thelma's ability could've gone a long way, as the film doesn't answer enough questions about our protagonist's condition.
Thelma is not a film that I would easily watch again with anyone that hasn't seen it before, but then again, many films also fit this category, and it doesn't mean that its a bad film. The film is beautifully crafted and scores points on its technical aspects, but it felt like it made a promise in the beginning that it failed tot keep towards the end, leaving questions unanswered and possibilities unrealized. Still, for those looking for a slow churning thriller, this is one that will bring the atmosphere. Happy viewing :).
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