So many real words – with no dialogue or subtitles
This film is in sign language; there are no subtitles or dubbing – because love and hate do not need translation. The film is a co-production of Hungary and the Netherlands and a spectacular debut of Ukrainian director and screenwriter Myroslav Slaboshpytskyi.
Slaboshpytskyi has managed to create an extremely bold and unusual film with long scenes that take the viewer through corridors and labyrinths of human relationships, through bursts of spontaneous love, but also a series of unbridled actions.
However, this is not the main advantage of the film. Filmed among students from a school for the deaf and dumb, The Tribe crosses their unadulterated personal worlds, in which there is no room for dubbing or subtitles. At the same time, it is perhaps the ‘most speaking’ film ever presented with no translation to so many audiences in different countries. The plot is very bright, fascinating and truly captivating. The personal story in it can grab each of us from the very beginning:
Deaf-mute Sergey enters a specialized school for the deaf and dumb. In the new place, he must find his way into the school hierarchy, regularly encountering cases of crime and prostitution. This is his meeting with the Tribe. Sergey takes part in several robberies and quickly rises high in the organization. He meets Anna, one of the Chief’s lovers, and inadvertently breaks all the unwritten rules of the Tribe.
The authentic presence of young non-professional actors and the confident directing of Slaboshpytskyi make modern silent cinema a unique experience for the audience: left to their visual senses, imagination and intuition, everyone begins to read in a new way body language and emotions.
The film received the 2014 Critics’ Week Grand Prix in Cannes and won the 2014 European Film Award for European Discovery of the Year, as well as the prize for best screenplay at the 2014 São Paulo Festival, for best director at the 2014 Thessaloniki IFF, and nine more awards from various film forums around the globe.
The Tribe premiere in Bulgaria took place within the 19th International Sofia Film Fest. The festival, together with the Deaf NOW Foundation, organized the Listen to the Deaf social campaign, which aimed to contribute through a discussion to a better understanding of the challenges that people with hearing impairment face every day, and thus – for their hearing full-worth social inclusion in Bulgarian society.
Sources:
- Clarke, D. 2015. The Tribe review: No dialogue, no subtitles but plenty of talk. // The Irish times. March 23: http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/film/the-tribe-review-no-dialogue-no-subtitles-but-plenty-of-talk-jdiff-2015-1.2146997
- Янева, Д. 2015. Заслушай се в глухите – призив на София Филм Фест. Март: http://www.gnezdoto.net/fakti/1246-zaslushai-se-v-gluhite-priziv-na-sofiq-film-fest