‘The Message’ Review: An Uneventful Drama About a Young Pet Medium

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In Ivan Fund’s monochrome drama “The Message,” the commercialization of the sacred and the desensitization of childlike enchantment often occur together. Interestingly, this is juxtaposed with a sanitized narrative, which may seem ironic given the film’s deeply emotional theme: a young girl who claims to converse with the spirits of people’s beloved pets, whether they are living or deceased.

Amidst a tough economic time in Argentina, an extraordinary threesome traverses the rural landscapes. The radiant and talented pre-teen Anika (Anika Bootz) communicates with animals near death or those that have already passed on. Simultaneously, her caretakers Myriam (Mara Bestelli) and Roger (Marcello Subiotto) interpret her messages for pet owners and bargain over the prices of her readings.

There’s nothing suspicious about their relationship, but Roger sometimes storms off angrily, and Myriam keeps Anika from directly interacting with humans due to her uncanny ability to understand deep, poetic messages left for them. The movie doesn’t really advance its storyline much between the opening and closing scenes, leaving viewers puzzled about its main theme. This stagnation caused many walkouts during the Berlin press screening. A few sad moments, such as Anika longingly looking out of the vehicle window or attempting to trade her lost baby teeth for money, hint at an underlying void in her life.

Though gaps in the narrative are often filled swiftly during their largely uneventful journey, questions about Anika’s family occasionally arise, becoming notably significant when Myriam tells a curious TV news crew that all women in her family possess this telepathic ability. A trip to Anika’s mother at a mental health facility could have added dramatic depth, but instead, it fades into insignificance, giving way to more landscapes and shallow discussions. Even heartwarming moments involving people and their pets seldom appear, leaving no room for contemplation about Anika’s methods or the effects of her words on her clients.

One significant asset of “The Message” lies in Bootz’s captivating performance. This young actor displays a mesmerizing mix of carefree exuberance and introspective melancholy, though the script seldom provides logical occasions for the latter emotion. The changes in mood are frequently mirrored by Mauro Mourelos’ score, which skillfully employs horns in diverse tones to illustrate these transitions. However, the musical cues, like the performances themselves, seem more noticed than experienced, reflecting an artistic style that leans too heavily on the straightforward for the story it aims to tell.

This movie is strikingly realistic, offering little scope for speculation or fantastical elements. It delves into spiritual themes, as well as innocence, naivety, and youth, but these explorations are firmly grounded in factual representation rather than creative interpretation. The main character, despite her hint of magical potential, is predominantly portrayed as a function of the vehicle she travels in or the window through which she observes life, thus lacking significant depth beyond her assigned roles. This limited perspective might have symbolic significance, but the movie seldom strays from this pattern, even during scenes of greater happiness and closeness. Consequently, the film becomes overly simplistic, attempting to depict the suppression and restraint of something profound yet unspoken, only to flatten it in the process.

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2025-02-18 18:47