Eden Review
Eden is a 2021 short film written and directed by Sven Spur.
If A24 produced and financed a short film Eden would certainly be a top candidate for something in that pantheon.
There is something to be said for purely visual storytelling. Something that gets lost in the shuffle all too often in the modern landscape. Sure, there are talented filmmakers who use the visuals to their advantage and of course anyone involved in this process knows you can’t possibly make a film without having at least some elements of the visuals saying something.
However, what this short film brings to the table is a true feast of storytelling with no character saying a single word. With that in mind, the beauty of it all is you understand every bit of what they are going through without it even being necessary.
A big part of that lies at the feet of the two leads in the piece: Mustaf Ahmeti and Vincent van Driessche who feel perfect in their portrayals of two gay lovers. Through small vignettes we see the pleasure, the trials, and the heartache that comes with this intense but carnal dynamic that these men share.
The other side of the film that shines too is within the audio of the piece. The sound work from Sven Dehandschutter, Jurrian Van Dijck and Raf Enckels truly carves out some auditory brilliance. With the minimalist score courtesy of Matthias Dewilde and Duke Jamal bringing perfect tones to everything on screen.
The filming style too is raw and gritty but somehow wonderfully beautiful with incorporations of in camera filtering with what looks like a pro mist filter. It appears to have been shot on film as well but with the high-end digital cameras it is easy to make this look too but either way the effect is so organic.
Eden tackles some deep subject matter in a very mature and uncompromising way. It is not suited for everyone but those who do connect with it will find a lot to not only love but take away from. It is films like this that show the power of what purely visual cinema can do.
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Cheers!
Daniel Hess
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