Before Dawn (2005) Online

I saw this film in New York (Sundance at BAM) and it blew me away. I wasn't expecting the film to be shot in one take, so I kept thinking about what Kubrick once said about the opening shot of a movie. According to him, it should be the most interesting thing the audience had seen that day. Well, I think I can say this film will probably be one of the most interesting things I have seen this year.

Many aspects of this film make it a short masterpiece. Its script, which comments on contemporary issues (though lightly). Its staging and choreography, which are phenomenal. I could go on for a while, but you really have to see it for yourself.

Luckily, the director attended a Q&A after the film. He explained that he had two shooting days and that they shot the film at dusk (you know, early in the evening) and only did four takes, the fourth being the final film. The director had certain ideas about the film and he practiced with a digital camera before the actual shooting. The location was found after the writing of a one page synopsis, but there was no script or storyboard. And the man in the end isn't a professional actor.

I love this film and loved talking to the director, who, by the way is a really nice guy.

I was looking for a plan sequence for inspiration in trying to make one myself and accidentally stumbled onto this one. (thanks to the nice sundance film festival website) It's a fine example of usage of a sequence shot. It moves from situational shot to the conclusion and there never really is a need to cut. The story is very powerful in it's summable simplicity and lends itself beautifully to this kind of camera-work. I would recommend it to everyone who likes this kind of inventive movie-making. As a student i think this is also an ideal movie to show to students why you should sometimes choose for a sequential shot instead of cutting your story to death.

Before Dawn has a single shot which is several minutes in length. Similarly to Orson Wells "A Touch of Evil" and Jean-Luc Godard's "Weekend" there is a brilliantly choreographed single shot lasting minutes. Technically this is immaculate, visually it is stunning. The story is set in a field; where the field is we don't know, but a lone truck drives up into the field and stops. A horn beeps and from beneath the long grass thirty of so people appear and proceed to enter the truck. We take it they hiding from something and this is their doorway. The truck leaves, but only to be greeted by a mass of police and even a helicopter blocking their path. By this point we see the discipline and dedication that went into this film. The police of course take their freedom and leave. One man raises up from the field, perhaps someone who knew what might happen and did not enter the truck. He walks away solemnly. This film is definitely for anyone who enjoys and admires intricate direction, masterful cinematography and long drawn out complex single shots. A fine example of the technical level which can be achieved with great difficulty.

Unfortunately, as much as I wanted this short to succeed, it has failed miserably in my eyes. I saw this film after it received numerous awards around the world (the latest one at the Sundance Film Festival) and I have to say, I expected much better than this.

There is not much of a story, so there isn't much to spoil, but I won't spoil it because it doesn't even deserve to be mentioned. Naturally, this is not why the film is weak; I think (or at least hope) that everyone has seen good 'Art' films (with a big A) that don't have much of a story, but somehow truly gives back the taste of life and its spirit, and is somehow unique.

I believe this film doesn't have anything in it to compete at the top level. I even doubt that the filmmakers themselves knew what they were trying to achieve. The film looks and feels cheap, the story is weak, the beginning of the film is hilarious and false - although it was intended to be dramatic and dead serious; the film has no real conflict etc.

The worst thing though which can be said about BEFORE DAWN is that it looks and feels like a student film (albeit a high budget one). I just didn't care about the whole thing, and although I tried, I just couldn't immerse myself in the film. There was no film magic you see. Not one good scene, that could save it from disaster. Especially the ending: WHAAH (you'll see)!

I was also disappointed by the fact that the most famous filmmakers of present day Hungary helped the young Bálint Kenyeres make this film. How could they not see how powerless and weak this film is?

I say this all as a Hungarian. In my opinion, if you want to see a good recent Hungarian film check out HUKKLE by György Pálfi. If you want to see good short films, watch British ones. Unfortunately, at the end of the day, overall, Hungarian film still cannot compete with the Western European big guns.

BEFORE DAWN is a very strange short film because it is all shot in very distant shots. You only see people and action occurring at a great distance and the exact plot is vague, though you assume it's all about illegal aliens and human trafficking. Because of this, the film is excessively cold and distant and it's tough to care about the movie at all. Yet, despite these obvious flaws and missing pieces in the narrative, this film has been honored repeatedly in a variety of film festivals. I just don't get it. The film called for many extras, a helicopter and lots of vehicles...yet its impact was minimal because of its odd style.

By the way, this film is part of the CINEMA 16: European Shorts DVD. On this DVD are 16 shorts. Most aren't great, though because it contains THE MAN WITHOUT A HEAD, COPY SHOP, RABBIT and WASP, it's an amazing DVD for lovers of short films and well worth buying.