under the tree...

I went along to the Watershed this afternoon to Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurdsson’s film “Under The Tree”. It’s a black comedy (I’m trying to think of an alternative description, but failing miserably!) about a dispute between neighbours, which spirals out of control. It starts with a tree completely overshadowing a neighbouring garden - but then progresses to bickering couples, mooning garden gnomes, disappearing pets… and a chainsaw (amongst other things)! It’s a very astute (and, at times, quite hilarious) observation of how people might react to situations that affect their everyday suburban lives and how relatively minor disputes can escalate into painful nightmares.
Battle lines are drawn; reprisals mysteriously happen; entrenchment intensifies…

The good thing (as far as I was concerned) was that, in their various ways, all the main protagonists were not particularly nice people (even if I did find myself ‘caring’ for them) – they each had their faults and issues – and so I felt able to sit back and watch things develop without feeling unduly anxious regarding the outcome or urging one side to emerge victorious. I could go on, but don’t want to give away too much!

The film has clearly thrown new light on our own ‘neighbour issues’ (with Japanese Knotweed spreading into our garden from next door), but…
Despite its somewhat farcical nature, I very much enjoyed the film (and I predicted the concluding images!)… it reminded me, in some ways, of the last Icelandic film I’d seen, “Rams”, which was also about communication (or lack of) between neighbours.