Peter Dalle
Suède 2003 96min Swedish o.v. English s-t.

On a train hurtling across snowy Europe, in 1945, a killer waits to strike. A depressed old bohemian queen ingests a euphoria-inducing drug and can’t stop laughing. A nun loses her faith, takes up smoking and turns murderous. A soul-searching author intent on helping with war relief ends up maiming and bludgeoning a poor young soldier in a series of gruesome mishaps; impossibly, the soldier maintains his sunny optimism. And somewhere on this train, behind one of those stubbornly sticky compartment doors, blooms secret same-sex romance. It’s part Hitchcock, part Mel Brooks, part Scream and part Airplane, a madcap mystery romp that never loses steam. Illusive Tracks is far more than an homage to old slapstick and film noir, though for movie buffs, there are certainly sly references aplenty. With eye-popping black-and-white photography, beautiful period production design, a dazzling ensemble cast, and a roaringly clever script that milks every throwaway moment for all it’s worth, this is a cinematic tour-de-force in a genre all its own. Writer/director Peter Dalle is a mad genius who lets us in on his delirious love affair with movies, and takes us on a train ride we never want to end. And if you see a soiled-looking Santa lunging down the corridor with a fire axe, just turn around quickly and head to the bar car for another glass of port. – Miami GL Film Festival

Shown on:

sunday, november 06, 9H40 PM parisien 6 - pgm23 (Illusive Tracks (Skenbart))