ABOUT ENDLESSNESS
A Mesmerizing Odyssey From Sweden
A priest has a nightmare about being crucified. A man is scorned by an old classmate he once wronged. Lovers float over the ruins of a once-thriving city. Roy Andersson’s newest film, About Endlessness, is not a typical narrative. It is a reflection of the human condition told through a series of 31 loosely connected vignettes. A narrator guides viewers through these short stories about the ups and downs of life. As you may have guessed, those three scenarios make up some parts of this philosophical film.
While each vignette tells its own small story, you will notice several themes and characters. Precisely, the priest is besieged by nightmares that come and go in this film. While he is the most featured of the multitude of characters, many others show how interconnected life is.
There are only so many ways we can describe this movie and not spoil the theme. It’s a beautifully woven treatise on life, the universe, and everything human. About Endlessness won the Silver Lion for Directing at the 76th Venice International Film Festival. See About Endlessness in theaters beginning on April 30, 2021.
