Screenings
- Stenen Hoofd – Amsterdam
Merry-Go-Round
- short
- 13'
- English subtitles
Stories can take unexpected turns. Not merry-go-rounds: they just go around and around, in one direction, utterly predictably endlessly the same turn. And yet, they can still surprise you, as this Russian short proves.
The official synopsis for Merry-Go-Round offers a few handholds that the film doesn’t quite make explicit: “The restaurant is closing, and Oleg Maratovich wants to celebrate. Taking along three of his employees, who are no longer able to resist his charm, he sets off in search of adventure. The story then has a completely unexpected twist.”
The last sentence can be taken literally, just like the title (a word that sounds so much better in the original Russian: ‘lalay-balalay’). Beyond that, there’s a lot that appears metaphorical, allegorical or other kinds of -orical about this minutes-long wild adventure.
Joost Broeren-Huitenga
