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How does one convey tension? |
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| 07/12/2007 |
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“There are films that come out of nowhere and are produced in the most unusual ways possible,” says Argentinean actor Arturo Goetz, the undisputed star of El Asaltante (The Mugger), in competition at Courmayeur.
The film has a unique beginning: it is a debut feature made while director Pablo Fendrik was preparing what was meant to be his first film. “Pablo is a very talented guy,” said the actor. “He’s a good director who will go far. He called me after he saw me in Daniel Burman’s Family Law. He was looking for funding and the cast for La Sangre Brota, the film that was supposed to be his feature debut. He sent me the script, which I liked very much, and I accepted. Then one day he called and said, ‘There are some problems with the film, we have to postpone the shoot. But have you about what happened in the news? About that man who robbed three schools?’ That’s when he started talking about El Asaltante.”
According to Goetz, the project came about as it was being made. There was no screenplay or lines to memorize, only a three-page treatment describing the scenes. “The approach to the work was more theatrical than cinematic. The actors rehearsed the scenes numerous times and we established them slowly, improvising the situation each time. In a film that has eight-minute sequences, being able to improvise is essential.”
And yet the tension that spectators should feel is powerful. The anxiety in El Asaltante is motivated not only by the choices in direction (close-ups, handheld camera, etc.) but also from acting that is not acted (and perhaps from scenes “stolen” on the street an in other places where the main character roams).
“Working this way is a double challenge for an actor,” explains Goetz. “We know nothing about the main character, not who he is or where he comes from. We don’t know what he was doing an hour earlier. We only gather his anxiety, the unease generated by the situations as they unfold. The shots chosen were very tight, so each single detail of his face, each wrinkle, each nuance become very important in giving the story its value.”
While the director doesn’t want to speak about this value, Goetz does: “The film can be seen as social criticism aimed not only at Argentina but at the entire world. It offers a discourse on maintaining one’s social class. But it has no moral. We leave that up to you.” |
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