DOCS DAY FOUR: MYSTERIOUS HISTORIES
What do Atlantis and Italian fascist architecture have in common? Best Boy watched films about them both yesterday. Please enjoy our round up of another fabulous day at Docs Ireland…
Once again, we began our day at the QFT, celebrating Irish documentary LEGEND Bob Quinn, by watching the first two episodes of Atlantean.
Atlantean, is a series of four films that skewer (or tridents) the romantic Celtic ideal of the origin of Irish culture. Quinn instead posits a theory that Irish people came from what he terms as an, ‘Atlantean' culture, with its origins in Western sea-facing Europe and North Africa. Quinn gives as evidence, sean-nós singing and Irish Dance, which he links to the Tar-Tars, and the Irish language which he links to the Berbers of North Africa.
The films are funny, educational and pretty convincing… The full Quartet of films can be seen on Vimeo… Worth a watch for those that love Ireland, or history, or documentary, or all of the previously listed things.
After that unique look at the origins of our culture, we moved from QFT screen two to QFT screen one for the harrowing, A State Of Passion.
The film is a study of Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah, a British-Palestinian surgeon who worked forty-three days straight in the Al Shifa and Al Ahli hospitals’ emergency departments in Gaza, and found himself the face of Palestinian resistance. An unrelenting, utterly important watch, the film is a brutal and honest look at the genocide in Gaza, and the people who are working through it, trying to help in any way they can.
A still from the film, showcasing Dr Ghassan Abu Sittah, alongside other vital healthcare workers in Gaza, rushing a patient in for emergency surgery.
Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah and every other doctor, nurse and volunteer in Gaza is a hero, and this film gives them the credit and respect they deserve. We are in the privileged position of watching from the outside, we have the comfort of not having to look at the horrific sights, but these people choose to help the people who need it most, risking their own lives in the process. We have to use this privilege to help in any way we can, engaging with Palestinian art, donating if we can, is vital. If you have the chance to watch this film, you must.
We ended our night in the QFT yet again, for hybrid-doc, Latina, Latina, which also featured an insightful, thoughtful Q&A with director, Adrian Duncan.
Latina, Latina, is a hybrid documentary, on one hand it weaves the story of an Irish geologist, living and teaching in Italy, who gets a call from a Berlin hospital telling her that her estranged father has had a fall and is unconscious. She hasn't spoken to her father in thirty years, and when she arrives at his apartment she stumbles upon his diaries, revealing he had spent time in her now hometown in Italy. The diaries end in tragedy, and the film as a whole is a gentle meditation, weaving through a stranger’s life.
On the other hand, it visually explores architecture, specifically fascist-era architecture, across Italy. This is the documentary aspect of the film, sometimes we hear facts about these buildings, other times we simply take in the view and the fictional story, but these buildings are the truth in this film.
The visuals of the film are absolutely striking, every shot is beautiful, and not just due to the buildings and surroundings themselves, but because of the masterful, intentional, cinematography. These visuals perfectly accompany the writing piece, which is poetic and poignant, a reflection on fascism, as well as love.
We may try to hide, and forget, our past, but how can we when it is carved into our buildings? And is it good to forget? If we forget our history, or ignore it, are we doomed to always repeat it again? The film says “too many still remember” the horrors of fascism in Italy to allow it to happen again, but unfortunately, years on from when the film is set, people are beginning to forget, and we are heading in the wrong direction. The film is ever-important, daring us not to forget this past, and to not let it happen again.
