Nothing

Running time: N/A

If Charles Dickens or Emil Zola were writing today, they might be scribing screenplays for films like Nothing. The incredible beauty of innocence and the oppressiveness of poverty have not often been portrayed so well since. The day-to-day desperation of Hela, a young mother with three wailing children, along with the indifference and contempt of her husband, her neighbors, and the official bureaucracy, permeates this film. Upon discovering she is expecting a fourth child, Hela is now faced with apprehension and dismay over keeping it. Hela's story and the accompanying images depict the inevitability of human weakness and the tragedy that often results. With Arthur Reinhart's beautiful photography, the film has a timeless quality that reaffirms the universality of human suffering and its consequences. Through stark scenes, the story unfolds in small events and humiliations of a one-sided marriage where the young wife is torn between love for her husband and responsibility for her children. Filled with sepia images and haunting emotions, Dorota Kedzierzawska's Nothing is like looking through an old photo album. Nominated, Crystal Star for Best European Feature - Brussels International Film Festival. --Ed Soohoo