POPCORN REVIEWSS

Written by Oliver Laxe, the setting holds a significance of its own in Sirat. The broader barren landscapes could be interpreted as a dystopian world wherein civilization is on the brink of extinction. A passing reference of an ongoing phenomena of a potentially world war three kind of a situation does further establish this fact on how the setup might be a bridge between modern and dystopian – even with the specific rave party setup representing a form of trance, or a transcendence into a spiritual world. It is hardly surprising on how the folks at the rave have given up on the materialistic lifestyles of their past, leaving their families behind and forming their own individual connections wherein random strangers are their immediate family. It remains a metaphor of a grey space between life and death – wherein all materialistic connections are left behind while you remain in a spiritual state of trance.

One of the recurring themes of the film is that of grief, particularly with the character of Luis who is accompanied by his son Esteban (Bruno Nunez). But the writer wishes to present grief in a very different way here – almost using it as a metaphor for the past. In a scene, we do get to know that Luis’ daughter wasn’t exactly ‘missing’ but a free-consenting adult who may have escaped from the life of Luis, who in turn may have been a controlling father (this is purely a speculation from my side). Here Luis has grief tagged to him in the form of regret, yes – but the larger discussion revolves around him being stuck in the past, as opposed to moving forward. The gaze isn’t that of morality or care here, but more spiritual in nature – even as Luis finds himself on an unexpected and life-altering journey with a few ravers – Josh (Joshua Liam Henderson), Steff (Stefania Gadda), Richard Bellamy (Bigui), Tonin (Tonin Janvier), Jade (Jade Oukid). In that sense, the drama here can be viewed as a road-trip also – more specifically a journey for Luis who is ‘forced’ to move ahead in life.

There is a fleeting theme of universal brotherhood somewhere that refreshingly contradicts the backdrop of world war 3, wherein nations and people would be pitted against each other (probably). In a scene, you see the ravers helping Luis’ caravan to cross a river, even when Luis has been desperately following them from a distance with a hope that they would lead him to his daughter. In another scene, you see the ravers taking care of Luis after an unforeseen tragedy, almost wanting him to pick himself up again in life (and in the moment). In plenty of fleeting scenes, you see them bonding over lighter moments like Luis’ dog falling ill after consuming faeces laced with LSD, or when ravers offer to trim the hair of Esteben, or even when one of the ravers puts up a puppet show for Luis and Esteben while using his deformed limb as a source of entertainment. It is a reminder on how life will offer fleeting moments of joy that would only be appreciated more in hindsight.

The divisive nature of the drama is evident in the second hour wherein the drama transforms into a ‘Final Destination’ kind of a thriller out of nowhere, with tragedy striking against the run of play and the body count rising. But from a spiritual gaze, this aspect of the drama could be linked to the unpredictability of life – something that had traces of it with its world war 3 references. It is almost a signalling of fate that one cannot escape, but in the same moment, it reminds the viewers to move ahead despite the obstacles in play. For instance, the scene that kills Esteban features him seated in a van that begins to move backwards before falling off the cliff – a direct metaphor of how grief or a tragedy prompts you to take a detour backwards whereas, life offers you the only choice to move forward. The same is referenced is a separate scene wherein Jade asks Luis to test her speakers while emphasizing on how they don’t sound the same anymore. Such is life, it is ever evolving.

This sentiment remains true even with a slight change of setting to a minefield in the Sahara wherein a potential moment of trance for the group results in a tragedy of sorts. The unpredictability of life is once again evident here, even with the survivors being startled and dubiously left with no choice but to move forward. But then again, the drama wishes to talk about the subsconcious when Luis decides to walk through the minefield at the end without thinking, only to escape unscathed unlike one of the ravers who dies. The parting shot of a train in the desert can be interpreted in both physical form and spirirual form. In the physical form, it can be equated to the ongoing refugee crisis that has plagued the world. On the spirirual front, the train again forms a metaphor for transcendence – of treading on a narrow path from hell to paradise that interlinks it with the physical world. The idea is thought provoking but also niche in many ways – the latter that will divide viewers for sure.