Mrs Green Review
Mrs. Green is a 2021 short film directed by Flavio Marigliani and written by Francesco Baj.
Living in a place of Brexit anxiety, Mrs. Green captures the macro and micro-level political fervor of a nation undergoing intense cultural change in a unique and well-contrived manner.
As a spiritual sequel to the first hybrid theatre and film production Goodbye Papa, this short immediately strikes a unique visual identity from the very beginning. Teatro Mutilingue has completely contrasted the initial style of a locked down camera system by filming this piece handheld with a VHS flair to it all.
It is a unique synergy between what is old and what is new. The simple fact of seeing a modern phone conversation on screen rendered in the boxy lettering of what you would see on a VHS tape with the date burned in was just simply an interesting sight. It shows though the thought that went into the piece as a visual metaphor for a nation struggling with an identity in the past and trying to create a new one for the future.
This is again a hybrid film that tackles a pseudo theatre style but presented through the medium of film. There are of course many direct addresses to the camera and minimal set design which adds to the charm. The performances on screen all set the stage through the opening moments of the film. Even though there are no dogs on the stage, nor are we in a park at all, it still feels vibrant despite this just being a stage.
This is another film that has been a pleasant surprise. There is an apparent knowledge of both mediums going on and while some things are not perfect, in particular the decision to use stock photos to illustrate the protesting going on in London, there isn’t anything that is a poor decision in the piece. Using photos on-screen in any film is just something that doesn’t work on this side of the fence personally.
This is another powerful piece by the entire team at Teatro Multilingue, one that is easy to enjoy with lots of deep layers to it. There is great acting and some unique visual styling that creates an instant identity. That is not even to mention the amazing use of mixed language on screen, while that is the point of this series, it is still really interesting to see language all coalesce at once.
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Cheers!
Daniel Hess
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