The Brand New Testament (2015)
Humor and mockery, there is a fine line between these two
and in history of any form of art where humor is an objective for the artist,
there has been occasions where the artist failed to make the dichotomy between
humor and mockery quite distinct. The line often becomes blurred for many; and
therein lie the beauty and novelty of one artist who manages to provide pure
humor though the subject of his work appears to take the form mockery. Belgian
filmmaker Jaco Van Dormael displays that rare talent of humor in his film The
Brand New Testament.
The Brand New Testament’s begins with the premise that God
does exist and he lives in Brussels; with his docile wife, the Goddess, and
rebellious daughter, Ea. God is tactless towards his wife and abusive towards
his daughter. While he is not being those towards his family, he makes up laws
on his computer, laws for worldly human. One example of those laws is ‘Your
phone will always ring when you are immersed in bathtub.’ I think one gets the
essence of the film now.
So, when Ea reaches a breaking point, after getting beaten
by her father, she decides to leave her father’s house after consultation with
her brother Jesus Christ, who she affectionately calls JC (Yes you are reading
it right). JC tells hers to find her own
apostles and write a new testament. So, Ea leaves to find her apostles, but not
before she gains access to her father’s computer and sends everyone in the
world, their day of death; and then she locked the computer so her father could
not access it again. All this happens at the beginning of the first act.
By now, after reading this, one can comprehend the absurdity
of the story of the film. But, what one cannot comprehend is how, with each
scene, this film takes ‘funny’ and storytelling to another level. Ea’s search
of six apostles unravels the unique stories of six persons who are fighting a
battle of their own now they know the day of their death. Each story, of each
apostle, would resonate with us, beneath the veil of humor. That is the virtue
of being a good satire and The Brand New Testament is excellent at it.
Van Dormael, who co-wrote the script with Thomas Gunzig,
wields a deft direction. The dialogues are witty and hilarious at the same
time. There are moments where one would hysterically burst into fits of
laughter and there are moments where a melancholic chuckle would appear on
one’s face. Never for a moment does any oddity or any absurd scene, which you
see in the film, would seem out of place or ludicrous. There is a poetic flow
in the humor of the film.
The entire cast, plays their oddball characters superbly.
Each character in this film is unique and forms pieces of the brilliant jigsaw
display, that is this film; and all the actors rises to the occasion to portray
theirs. Benoit Poelvoorde should be mentioned for wickedly mischievous and
despicable portrayal of God. It his performance that makes us loathe his
character and thus laugh out loud when he gets in trouble. Pil Groyne, who
plays 10 years old Ea, was memorable too; and not to forget David Murgia’s
charming yet hilarious cameo as Jesus Christ.
The film is full of virtues, and among the glittering
virtues, cinematography would take an essential spot. The film is beautifully
shot. Christophe Beaucarne’s camerawork deserves every praise there is not
give. Choice of background score and music is also commendable.
The Brand New Testament is a film that will be etched in
your memory while bringing a smile, whenever you think about it.
5/5
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