To Garbo and Lenin Review

To Garbo and Lenin is a 2018 short film written and directed by Jessica Lauren.

In this slice of historical fiction, we are transported to a day in which the famous Greta Garbo and Vladimir Lenin meet, finding a new found purpose in one another. To Garbo and Lenin forms a uniquely enchanting visual style that one watching will either find charming or completely unapproachable.

Watching this it was enjoyable being put in this dream like reimagining of Stockholm in 1917, the pseudo animated rotoscope style of the presentation was enjoyable. It felt modern yet vintage all at once. The constant overlayed border, while a touch distracting at times, made every scene feel like a vignette or painting.

This is an interesting subject to even really approach or imagine. Greta Garbo of course would see a life of stardom in Hollywood, while Vladimir Lenin would go on to rule over Russia as dictator. To cast such characters in such a romanticized light, especially Lenin is a bold choice but while it can make the film a little hard to suspend disbelief during, is still an interesting concept nonetheless.

While not a perfect short film it still follows a good arc of having each of these wildly famous historical characters defining their new identities to go on to larger things in life. It takes a strong romanticized aesthetic which is respectable.

Again, the minimalist yet large scale visual style might be off-putting to some who could find it hard to sit down to but it creates something that is instantly unique and done far too little in film.

Overall, this is a dazzling yet somehow strange short film that feels like a short story from yesteryear. This is not meant as a slight toward it but just a comment on how easy yet hard it is to recommend to the average viewer. On a personal level it was something that was a cute short film but it could be alienating all at once. The best advice to say on this piece is to try it out and if the visuals or style is just a bit too far out there for you then this is not your film. However, I think there is a good core of people who will enjoy it for what it is.

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Cheers!

Daniel Hess

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