........ ........... ............ ............ ............ ..from Pasto,Colombia...Via: L.A. CA., CALI, COLOMBIA and ORLANDO, FL The Title says it all: ABSURDISTAN. An International/Russian film that has its ups and downs, so to speak! And the emphasis here is really on "INTERNATIONAL"! German Director/Co-Writer: Veit Helmer; Azerbaijani Co- Writer: Zaza Buadze; Female Lead: Kristyna Malerova-No INFO on her nationality, but surname appears to be Czech; German Male Lead: Max Mauff; The rest of the cast hails from at least a dozen different European and Westeren Asian countries! This explains why so few cast members were given dialog...Most of them either don't speak Russian, or speak it with a very discernible accent! ABSURDISTAN is a very visual experience. IMDb talks about how the 40 year old Helmer loved silent films in his university film studies. Perhaps this is why the word "Slapstick" is bantered about a lot referring to this film. Slapstick is very over-the-top. Absurdistan's style is much too "Tableauesque" (Coining term via poetic license!) to be labeled slapstick. But whatever you want to call it: It works...Most of the time.FANTASY is another term people seem insistent upon using to explain segments of the film. I'd say there are a few mildly surreal/absurd moments, but nothing beyond that. ABSURDISTAN really doesn't remind me of any other film, except perhaps 1960's Never on Sunday. There is one brief moment of nudity. AYA, the female lead, can't sleep owing to the heat, and climbs up on the roof, removing her pajamas. Temelko spots her and chases her around for a moment, but that's it. There is a little simulated sex done with clothes-on, but aimed much more at comedy than at any type of arousal.Oddly, I perceive ABSURDISTAN as a perfect extended family get-together flick, provided everyone is over 14 or 15! It's very easy to imagine a large Eastern-European family getting together and having an exceptionally enjoyable time watching this! If anybody tries my suggestion, let me know how it works out, please! 7*....ENJOY/DISFRUTELA!Any comments, questions or observations, in English or Español, are most [email protected]

Remember 'Lysistrata' written by Aristophanes in 411 BC, a comedy of 'one woman's extraordinary mission to end The Peloponnesian War. Lysistrata convinces the women of Greece to withhold sexual privileges from their husbands and lovers as a means of forcing the men to negotiate peace, a strategy however that inflames the battle between the sexes. The play is notable for its exposé of sexual relations in a male-dominated society and for its use of both double entendre and explicit obscenities'? Writer/director Veit Helmer (with co- writers Gordon Mihic and Zaza Buadze) have very successfully updated this tale, bathed it in magical realism and fantasy, placed it somewhere along the Silk Road in the mountains where no one would want to live, and have called it ABSURDISTAN. This is one of those films that very thankfully requires us to surrender the need for realism and substitute the pleasure of laughing and spend a comfortable hour and a half of parody of current sexism and the rich treasures of old movies, bawdy silliness, and the magic of love. For this viewer it works on every level - thanks in part to the imaginative cinematography of Giorgi Beridze and the charm of Shigeru Umebayashi's musical score. Absurdistan has a problem: the water supply that comes from a complex well system in the mountains outside the town has diminished to a trickle. The men of the town ignore their wives' complaints, preferring instead to gather daily in the local teahouse, leaving the women to not only tend to their homes but also finish the work of the men. A significant diverting part of this community is a young couple who have been in love since childhood, married in a mock ceremony at age 8, matured to teenagers- Aya (Kristyna Malérová) and Temelko (Maximilian Mauf) - but warned by the girl's grandmother (Nino Chkheidze) that they may not consummate their union until the stars are in alignment in four years! Temelko has spent his youth inventing things, not exactly in the mold of the other men of the village. He and Aya believe that their sexual union will give Aya the ability to fly, and Temelko intends to keep that concept viable. The young men of Absurdistan, Temelko among them, are bused off to some city where they are to learn how to fix the water shortage. While they are gone the women, much due to Aya's leadership decide that in order to force the lazy men to work on the problem, they will withhold conjugal obligations: no water, no sex. The bus returns -empty - and only Temelko comes back to the village because of Aya. The silly men decide to avoid being dominated by the women's rule and try multiple ways to find satisfaction, first by attempting to leave town to go gallivanting into the city (aborted by the wives), then to invite a carnival shooting gallery into the town - the prize being a night with the shooting gallery owner's (Ivane Ivantbelidze) daughter (Ani Amiridze). Naturally the one who can successfully hit the target is Temelko, and while Aya believes Temelko will sacrifice his conjugal initiation, he instead devises inventions that entertain Aya and eventually he is able to solve the water problem. And as promised, with the entire village celebrating restored physical bliss, Temelko sets off a fantastical machine that allows Aya to fly - and return, thrilled, back to his arms. Though this film is directed by the fine German director Veit Helmer, the feeling is entirely that of Russian folklore. The actors selected for the villagers have the most interesting faces and bodies imaginable and the exuberance of their acting is infectious. The reference to the history of the town (often tying in to old movies) is photographed like scratchy old film, and the active story itself is in rapturously beautiful color. The film's story is basically voice over (in Russian), except for Aya's protestations. This is a fable, a fairytale, and a pure escapist delight of a film. It would be difficult not to fall under its spell. Grady Harp

German director/writer,Veit Helmer's films are an acquired taste (much like Canada's Guy Maddin). His style of directing seems to lean toward the mainly visual (there is little to no dialog in his films),and in metaphorical terms,has a tendency to (at times)resemble some of the films of Czech film makers,Jiri Menzil,etc. In this gentle fable,'Absurdistan',the story takes place in the fictional village of Absurdistan,somewhere in a part of Russia that seems to have been forgotten by time (it's not supposed to be listed on any map),but still exists,none the less. Aya & Temelko are two young people who have been in love with one another since childhood. Aya's fortune telling grandmother predicts that the two should get together when two star signs merge. Sound simple enough? There is a problem in the village with the water supply (and the lazy,good for nothing men,who are content with just hanging out in the local teahouse all day while their women do all the work,including the work projects that the men start,but never seem to finish). When things get downright dire,what with the nearly total lack of water,the women stage a sex strike ultimatum on the men. It's up to Temelko to try & fix the water problem, so he can be with his beloved Aya forever. Veit Helmer directs & co-writes the screenplay (with the assistance of Zaza Buadze,Gordan Mihic & Ahmet Golbol). The cinematography by George Beridze makes nice use of what appears to be a arid,near desert environment. The cast is made up of mainly Russian actors who do their job well. If you enjoyed Helmer's film, 'Tuvalu' from a few years back, this will be another feather in your conical cap. Spoken (what little on screen dialog,outside of the narrative structure)in Russian with English subtitles. No MPAA rating,but contains flashes of nudity & sexual content.

Reportedly based on a true story (though with quite a bit of legendary embellishment, one assumes, at least in its more fantastical elements), "Absurdistan" takes place in a remote village where the women wage a full-fledged battle-of-the-sexes, agreeing to withhold their conjugal duties until the men in the community repair the pipe that for decades has brought water to the town. The story also features Tamelko (Max Mauff) and Aya (Kristyna Malerova) as two teenagers whose own plans to finally consummate their relationship must now be put on hold.Homespun in appearance and humanistic in tone, "Absurdistan" (a German film done in Russian) is highly reminiscent of those quirky Czech comedies that enjoyed such popularity here in the States back in the 1960s. The scenes set in the past have been deliberately designed to look like aging home movies - grainy, washed-out, and scratchy - while those set in the present are crisp, clean and bursting with color.The movie blends small town humor with touches of magic realism and the occasional flight of fancy. There are times, admittedly, when the movie gets a little too silly and cutesy for its own good, but, on the positive side, it never takes itself too seriously or condescends to its characters. The mood is upbeat and the details charming in what amounts to a modern-day (but not TOO modern-day) version of "Lysistrata."