Through three parallel stories intertwined with the mentality and customs of a small town, the feature film "Roda" by the director Ise Cosje, talks about the silence of the patriarchy and the fate of its prisoners in forgotten regions, about the cruelty and humor of life and ossified habits.
After the world premiere at this year's 16th Prishtina Film Festival (Pri-Fest - Prishtina International Film Festival) in September, and participation and award for the best screenplay at the Tirana Film Festival, "Roda" had its Montenegrin premiere on Tuesday evening in Music Center of Montenegro in Podgorica.
Although the hall was not filled to capacity, as an event (let alone a film!) like this deserves, the audience expressed their enthusiasm after the screening with strong applause, and the main actor received a special ovation as a gift from part of the crew Škumbin Istrefi. The audience recognized the sincerity and emotion that the film brings, and this was also noticed by Istrefi, who in an interview with Vijesti later pointed out that in the applause he felt a strong impression from the audience that recognized the importance of the achievement of the Montenegrin-Kosovo director.
The plot of "Rode" is located in today's Montenegro, on the border with Albania, in a small village that seems to bear the burden of all the abandoned places in the world. Through the prism of a village on the border with Albania, "Roda" confronts us with universal themes that are still alive and whose echo is constantly fading away: humiliation of women, trafficking in women, arranged marriages, identity, sexuality, suicide, expectations of the environment, existence, questions and re-examinations a life that is consciously lived only in anticipation of death..., and all this in conservative communities.
"The film follows the migrations of the population from that area, which began in the sixties of the last century, and which continue today. The consequences of these migrations are the main theme of the film. This darkly humorous drama follows the lives of three generations of women left to their own devices, faced with questions about life and death," the film's description states.
It seems that "Roda", in addition to the above-mentioned consequences, deeply thematizes the causes of those departures that continue to happen... Because, leaving can be both escape and victory, staying can be acceptance and surrender, and both are giving up in their own way, facing, fighting... The topic of migration, universal in itself, in "Roda" is more than a warning or a statistic, it is the fate of people, families, entire regions, it is pressure, but also freedom, the possibility to find and express yourself.
Through three dramatic streams, the film follows not only the generational migrations of the inhabitants of the area, but also the lives of those who keep the small place alive, at the same time "nurturing" numerous toxic practices - gender inequality, divisions, customs that, by the nature of things, impose a certain hierarchy and stereotypes, and all this in an extremely authentic, strong and subtle way full of spirit and humor, the sobering, anxious one.
The darkly humorous drama occupies viewers from the very beginning with all its elements, drawing them into an (un)familiar world, space and time. Through three stories, three generations of marginalized women and tired, but consistent, men, it is shown how they obeyed their roles, left to themselves under the pressure of expectations and tradition, faced with questions about life and death, about love and jealousy, about acceptance, nation and religion, customs and beliefs, tradition and modernity, about oneself and others... The common, but also personal inner struggle to preserve dignity, identity, family tree, becomes the core stories. The complexity and courage of all that is shown in a realistic, simple and close way, in which every viewer will recognize something they have heard about or witnessed...
The subtle, intimate and tender, yet loud story about the destinies of people on the margins of society, the one we create and of which we are a part, with dashes of spirit and humor against the cruelty of custom, tradition and powerlessness over life, kept the viewers awake. The film is easy to follow and watch, it is enjoyed, (sympathized), cares, while at times it comes across with humor that simultaneously refreshes and enlightens, magnetically attracting attention and laughter. That humor is omnipresent in the script, but also in the scenography...
At the very beginning, we follow the main character (Istrefi) who brings to his house another woman he bought to give birth to his children, because the first one could not. The three of them continue their life together, which is one of the three stories of this film. Dialogue with an elderly neighbor: "Is he with Christ or Muhammad?" - "She is with me, old man. -Who are you with?" -"Me with America", immediately promises more similar moments that will cause laughter in the sequel, but also be a painful reminder of established views, arduous lives, global divisions and absurdities. All these moments of humor will also show how easily we laugh at jokes that actually expose the daily belittling of women. That laughter, at first glance easy and innocent, is truly sincere and harmless, which is actually a harsh reminder of deep-rooted injustice and pain. Precisely thanks to such segments, the film has a strong feminist streak, along with the one that treats patriarchy, migration, and the fate of small towns.
The second story follows an old married couple who, waiting for the inevitable, long for their son in America. His mother cries for his return and marriage (she even found him a wife), while he built his life there, not at all easy, but free. There is also a story about the relationship between daughter-in-law and mother-in-law, and mutual expectations, after both are left without their beloved man (son or husband). This relationship develops in the direction of "what is proper, what must and what the environment and practice dictates"...
And all this is a call - to listen to ourselves, the environment, those who do not have a voice, it is a call to fight, to understand the world from which those who leave come, to face the question of why and for whom we live, and what is left behind when shall we go? But, in addition to all that, "Roda" also reminds us that the past is not a burden if we learn to accept, understand and preserve it (and not preserve it selfishly and at the expense of anyone), and that in the end, after all, we make a film about our own lives.
Although the name "Roda" suggests hope, a new beginning or a return, it is almost non-existent in the film. The only reference to that remains the question whether the arrival of the stork is a good or bad sign and why does the stork come at all? One would say that the absence of symbols is permissible, but perhaps this is precisely the film's loudest comment on how silence and absence are often the strongest reflections of oblivion, stuckness and stagnation, but also how we often drive away new opportunities without being aware of them (because they come in unexpected packaging ). Instead, the film opens and closes with death, its announcement and warning, but also the question of who is next, because everyone seems to be waiting for it and doing nothing else (although they worry about extending the lineage, heir, children...)...
The strong story is additionally strengthened by superb film aesthetics. The photograph, mild and faded, is a mirror of a landscape full of pain, sadness, suffering, but also beauty, the mountains in the north, the color of the day and the poetic dusk that lasts longer than the night itself, when the contours of the world enter the stage, but also the wail, the bells... Authentic music, lively, rhythmic, light, reminds of old movies and perfectly complements the atmosphere in which the world of old and modern collide.
Producer Ivan Đurović he expressed the hope that "Roda" will survive current trends and become a permanent document of time. And indeed, "Roda" seems like that - a completely realistic and true black-humored drama that defies both trends and statistics. "Roda" brings an important voice in the fight against forgetting, against toxic customs and divisions, against patriarchy, reminding people, people and places, life.
Bonus video:
