A very special NewScreen tonight… kind of a hard one to “sell”… Erik Poppe’s Utoya: July 22 reenacts a 72 minute terrorist attack on an AUF (a youth group affiliated with the Norwegian Labor Party) summer camp. The movie is shot in one continuous take, and focuses on Kaya, who has dragged her younger sister to summer camp, very much against her teenage will. The experience is brutal, and mesmerizing. It felt inappropriate to be breaking out popcorn, and the audience agreed when polled.

Utoya: July 22 was recommended by writer and NewScreen regular, Howard Fishman, who interviewed Poppe for the New Yorker at this year’s Gothenburg film festival (Read Howard’s review). Apparently the crew went through five full takes, and loudspeakers were set up throughout the woods to broadcast the “gun shots”. At one point, Kaya is hiding on the forest floor, attempting to use a mobile phone, when she notices a mosquito landing on her arm. She lets the mosquito be. Quite a metaphor…

After watching the end credits all the way through (folks were kind of in shock at the ending), a lively discussion broke out about the mosquito. CGI? Nope. it was real. All the more reason to applaud the camera work.

And then… banana bread! It’s getting to be a thing.

Our not-so-short feature this week was Little Red Riding Hood, starring a very young Christina Ricci, directed by David Kaplan. It never fails to entertain.”Are you pinching out a big loaf?” LOL