Review of Songs from the Second Floor (2000) by Ryan M — 03 Sep 2009
Four years in the making, and all of it done in the studio, Roy Andersson's "Songs From The Second Floor" attacks capitalism, portrays the bleakness of life and creates some absurdly funny situations all at the same time.
Because of it's unique style, it's not an easy film to pigeonhole or describe to other people, but I'll give it a try: A series of vignettes, each loosely connected to each other by the characters in the film (The main character is an elderly man whose business just went up in flames).
It does contain surreal elements, but because the camera only moves once in the entire film, it all seems so normal which adds to the shock value. It is a black comedy about the Apocalypse bringing humanity and society to a stand still, an offbeat black comedy that delves into surrealism while shot almost like a documentary.
I tend not to give films from the 00's "Masterpiece" status, because I think that should come with time, but this is one film that has definitely earned it.
This review of Songs from the Second Floor (2000) was written by Ryan M on 03 Sep 2009.
Songs from the Second Floor has generally received very positive reviews.
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