Sunday, 16 June 2013

On the Curiosity of Bernie


A new Richard Linklater film is always a moment to saviour and we may be spoilt this year with the conclusion to perhaps the most honest love story captured on film with Beyond Midnight finishing off the Ethan Hawke / Julie Delpy three decade love affair.

Before that we have Bernie, a curious film, remarkably based on a true story. It is best to arrive to Bernie knowing as little as possible and be swept along by its fantastic performances and ability to capture with real vividness the essence of a place.

What can be mentioned without ruining the effect is that Bernie is mostly told through the use of to camera interviews, which is an interesting choice, but not necessarily a beneficial one. The reason behind this is clear at the beginning, but its use becomes less effective as the film progresses and by the mid point, we are yearning for more dramatic scenes. As a piece of work it feels more descriptive than analytical and instead of really knowing Bernie, we know what people think of Bernie, which creates a false representation (a paradox for the medium).

Despite this it still stands out from other recent offerings and is worth seeing for its performances alone. 

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