"FATHER
AND SON"
SOKUROV'S
NEW FILM WILL BE INSPIRED BY "MOTHER AND SON"
Alexander
Sokurov (picture) recently charmed the audience at the 55th
Cannes Festival with "Russian Ark", the most daring
application of digital resources in the making of a feature-length
film - over two thousand extras and actors, a single shot
with no cuts, three centuries of history, a fascinating
walk along the corridors of the former St. Petersburg Palace,
which today houses the l'Hermitage Museum.
Good news is that Sokurov is preparing for the end of July
the shooting of his new feature, "Father and Son".
According to the director himself, the ones who saw his
previous "Mother and Son" know what to expect.
"It is like a sequence of that movie", he says
with a nasty smile.
"Mother and Son" is an eloquent and fruitful exercise
about asphyxia in a relationship between two desperate beings.
The spirituality that emanates from this relationship is
oppressive, the sepia lighting of the film and the broadness
of the landscapes suggest an irrevocable time. The dying
mother seems to want to drag the son to her own tomb. Mother's
love triumphs and dilacerates the relationship instead of
perpetrating it.
'Jornal da Mostra' anticipates with exclusivity the first
pages of the script of "Father and Son", written
by Sergej Potepalov and Alexander Sokurov himself, giving
a hint of how it will be shot soon:
1. Apartment/ Son's Room Interior/Morning
A
bed with fitted sheets of a thick grey material. The contours
of a human form are seen on the bed. Semi-darkness. The
camera approaches the bed so closely that the texture of
the sheets is recognizable. A body rolls around "artificially"
into frame. Chest, arms and back. The body rolls over and
again in the bed, as if it were trying to dissolve into
it…
The body of a young man. White as marble…
The young man seems to be dreaming. Something is happening
to him. Maybe he's fighting someone, maybe he's making love
to someone. It's eventually understandable that in his dream
the young man has lost the fight and he's beaten from the
blows. He moans and calls out for help.
The shadow of another person falls on his body. Already,
the other's arms are seen holding the body tightly in attempt
to calm him. Some wrestling has taken place, but the young
man doesn't comprehend where he is or what has happened.
He tries to free himself from the arms that want to calm
him. As if he was fighting for his life. The fight lasts
a long time. So long, until the stronger body and arms end
up calming the young man.
The faces of these persons are seen. One is young, the other
older. Both are tired from their wrestling. The two men
look each other in the eyes. One is the SON, the
other is the FATHER.
SON
You saved my life again.
If not, I could have been assassinated once again.
FATHER
One day, I won't hear your cries.
And they'll kill you. You must cry out louder.
SON
Again you can't sleep?
FATHER
No. I was already awake.
SON
You're covered in sweat…
FATHER
Yes…
The
Son brushes his forehead against the upper chest of the
father, more at home in this position.
SON
(softly, without intonation)
I love you
Pause
FATHER
(off)
Where are you now?
SON
I see trees and a simple path. It's beautiful.
The
Father turns his son's body toward him so that he can take
his son entirely in his arms. Pause.
2.
Scenery with a Path Exterior/Day
Birch
trees, grass, along the path's edge…
FATHER
(off)
Am I there, too?
The
Son enters frame. He walks in front of the background scenery.
He responds to his father while walking, all the while looking
into the camera.
SON
No. I'm alone here…
He
smiles….
Alexander
Sokurov (na foto, segundo da esq. p/ dir.) encantou recentemente
as platéias do 55° Festival de Cannes com "Arca
Russa", a mais ousada aplicação dos recursos
digitais na feitura de um longa-metragem - mais de dois mil figurantes
e atores, um plano contínuo sem cortes, três séculos
de história, um fascinante percurso pelos corredores do
antigo palácio imperial russo de San Petersburgo, hoje
o Museu do l'Hermitage. 
