Katalin Varga (2009, Peter Strickland): Romania

Reviewed by Charlotte Brange. Viewed at the Metro 4, at Santa Barbara Film Festival.

Katalin Varga is the story about Katalin Varga herself. She lives in a small village with her husband and young son. Everythings seem normal until this one especially day arrives. We’re not exactly told what really happened, but we know that something happened because Katalin’s husband gets very mad at her and tells her to leave the little village.

So begins Katalin’s story. She is abandoned by her husband and the whole village; she can’t set her foot anywhere near the town anymore. She takes her son and flees from the memories, out on the run. It’s uncertain where she’s going, since Strickland builds up this ‘mystery journey’, where is she exactly going? What is she running from? And most important of all: what is she trying to find?

Katalin drags her son all over the country and their relationship changes as the movie grews darkener. What started off with a bright, sunny day on the countryside is now filled with clouds, suspiciousness and revenge. We are never told what really happened, what forced Katalin to leave, but Stickland leaves small traces of evidence everywhere. For example, Katalin seduces a man at a club which ends in everything but passion, a murder. What was his contribution to what happened so long ago? Katalin has unfinished business with someone. But not until Katalin and her son decides to stay over at Antal & Etelka things get really weird. It’s not until then that Katalin confesses what actually did happen to her. The interesting part about this confession is that it’s not the ending. It seems like the movie is just about what happened to Katalin, but on the contrary this is where the real action starts. This really impressed me and showed what a powerful movie this was.

As I’m writing this, I realize that there were actually not that much dialogue in the movie. Everything was visual and no focus on the talk – feelings were said without and words spoken. A close-up of Katalin’s worried face, in the next shot she expresses anger without sound. Her son, Orban, his confused eyes at Katalin. No words are needed when you have a great story and a wonderful cast.

The landscape and nature is used very well. The sun and blue skies were used in the beginning to show the lighter and easier mood. As the movie developed, The sky turned grey andeventually black. Katalin looks frightened into the dark forest and recalls her horrible memories. Hand cameras follows Katalin’s run over the field and their shaky journey. It’s not a movie for people without patience. I don’t have that much patience so sometimes it was a little bit too slow for me, but the movie was interesting and well done. I was really surprised when I found out that this was actually Peter Strickland’s very FIRST movie. It does not seem like that at all, the opposite: Katalin Varga looks like a movie that has been well planned and made with a lot of experience.