On Body and Soul (2017)
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On Body and Soul Movie Review
On Body and Soul is a 2017 Hungarian romance film directed by Ildiko Enyedi and starring Geza Morcsanyi and Alexandra Borbely. It is a very good film.
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“I was a deer in a forest“
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Endre and Maria are two misfits who work together at a slaughterhouse. They share the same dream every night in which they are two deer who meet in a forest. Eventually, the two realize that, befriend each other and start a relationship. He has given up on love and she doesn’t know what love is and they have to get over that.
Endre is very endearing and caring and of course Maria is also quite sweet and likable although very weird and troublesome. Both are odd and their relationship is frequently quite weird and even awkward at times and that makes them different and interesting to follow. The performances from Borbely and Morcsanyi are both excellent as well.
On Body and Soul features a very unique, interesting premise. I would have liked more dream psychology and more drama, but the dream sequences are moody and elegant and of course the romance is superb. Some of the slaughterhouse sequences bothered me and were disgusting, but still that setting brought authenticity to this picture as it is different and quite interesting.
The film takes its time to get there owing to a slow start and I did not like the scene where she tried to kill herself, but overall the entire second half is where the movie shines and especially their conversations stole the show as they are either intriguing or very sweet.
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The dialogue here is fantastic and the script is phenomenal. Some of the film’s execution isn’t great and the pacing is particularly troublesome, but overall the film is very engaging to watch and in the end an unforgettable, very original viewing experience unlike any other.
The direction from Ildiko Enyedi is very good and one of the film’s highlights. The film has a very cold, yet at times heartwarming mood to it plus it deals with the kinds of oddball, misfit personalities with whom I personally identify and thus I loved following these two.
On Body and Soul is weakly paced and sometimes too odd, yet incredibly authentic in its very original, weird and ultimately very interesting storyline. The direction and the performances are terrific, the film is very atmospheric and the highlight is the wonderful romance between its two endearingly weird and sweet characters.
