This Slovenian film by writer / director Ema Kugler is a languidly paced, visual wonder. With a quiet, confident hand, the film reflects an artistic, visionary view on the modern condition. The film opens with a stark depiction of the atrocities so commonly seen in the various conflicts around the globe, but the scene is not gratuitous. It rather encapsulates and expresses the scope of the problem in a tightly contained and visceral fashion. Moving on, we follow refugees in a barren landscape, laying bare the isolation and loss of those dispossessed by the machines of war.
And this is where the film ultimately takes us. Into the depths of the elite and those who wield power by careful manipulation of religion, the military and through policies that benefit the few at the expense of the many. Artfully stitched together, the images are riveting, and the driving forces behind the cabal running the world are made human and understandable, abhorrent as they may be. Ms. Kugler has rendered complex, global issues of human suffering and strife into a film of haunting beauty and breathtaking scope. While the pace may be offsetting to a few, the richness of the storytelling images and the strength and conviction behind the director’s choices I think will leave few able to look away.
This is an important film and one well worth watching. The care and passion the director put into this film is evident in every frame. From the incredible set design, to the imaginative and subtle use of CGI, Echoes of Time is a beautifully framed feature. Sparse of dialogue and full of meaning, it is a film to be savored.
LOS ANGELES FILM REVIEW 