SMALL GODS (ELENA'S ELEGY)
Belgium, 2007, 91 minutes, Colour.
Steffi Peeters, Titus de Voogot, Louiza Vander Woestijne.
Directed by Dimitri Karakatsanis.
Small Gods (Eleanor’s Elegy) is a first film written and directed by Dimitri Karakatsanis. It was made in Flemish language, the director having done his studies in Belgium. Some sections are in French.
Basically, this is a road movie. It opens with the road, a tunnel, a car accident. It then moves to a hospital where Eleanor is grieving the death of her child in the accident. She is taken away by two mysterious characters and goes on a journey with them throughout the countryside, encountering all kinds of unusual people including a very strong religious revivalist preacher. She begins to understand herself, feels that this is the right place to be, also tries to understand the two people she is with, especially the young woman who has been abused by her father. The context of the film the capture of Eleanor by the police and her being interrogated, her explaining what had happened to her as well as this being visualised. However, one soon realises that the interrogator is the equivalent of God. She is in a kind of purgatorial examination of her consciousness and her life. This gives the film the blend of the real as well as the surreal and gives it some religious dimensions in terms of identity, responsibility, the role of God and judgement.
1. The impact of the film? A small drama? The first film by the director? His visual style, narrative style? Message?
2. The titles, the focus on Elena? The focus on the God issue? God himself, the representations of God, angels, devils? The Christian background - made explicit? The preacher? The lyrics of the songs?
3. The terrain, the road movie, the Belgian countryside? The office, the river, the caravan? The violence? The musical score?
4. The opening, the road, the tunnel, the car crash, Elena in hospital, mourning her dead son? Was Elena dead or alive at this point? David coming to rescue her?
5. The framework of her telling her story to the police, to God? Was it clear that the individual represented God? Assistant? God's response - wanting to believe? Uncertain?
6. Elena's journey, feeling right with David and Sarah? The abduction from the hospital, the escape? With them in the caravan? Their travelling the roads? The people that they encountered on the road, the caravans, the cars? The religious preacher?
7. The character of David, his reason for taking Elena from the hospital? His treatment of her, the interactions, love for her? Sarah, the friendship, the bond between the two - leading to the gradual revelation of what had happened to Sarah? The brutality of her father, his violence, her violent reaction towards him?
8. Elena and her experiencing these two characters, the other characters - and a time to mourn her son as well as to examine the meaning of her life?
9. The purgatorial overtones? Intimations of judgment? Life, afterlife?
