#27 - November (2017)
(dir. Rainer Sarnet)
The plot of this one is a bit hard to describe - at its core it's a story about Liina, a young peasant woman in the 19th century trying to win the affection of a man named Hans, who is smitten with a young baroness. That basic story is wrapped in layers of Estonian folklore. Some of it is fairly standard stuff - ghosts and witches and the like - but it also gets into some really weird and wild myths. The strangest are creatures called kratts, which are built out of everyday items (tools, scraps of wood, animal skulls, etc) and then given life by selling your soul to the devil. They look super cool and creepy and are also the source of much of the film's humor.
This Estonian film touches on the horror genre, but it also combines fantasy, drama, and comedy into a really unique package. It's at times creepy, funny, and sad. The black and white cinematography is gorgeous - this is one of those films where you could grab almost any random frame and hang it on your wall. The music is excellent too. My only complaint is that it probably could've been shorter - there are several sequences that are fun but have nothing to do with the plot, such as a scene where the peasants trick the plague (masquerading as a goat) into leaving them alone by putting their pants on their heads. I love that stuff, but it hurt the pacing of the movie a little.
If you like folklore and bizarre myths, or just want to appreciate a beautifully shot film, I definitely recommend checking this out.
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