Dir. Josh Appignanesi, 2006, UK, 81 mins
Cast: Nathalie Press, Joel Chalfen, Félicité Du Jeu
Review by Frances Cherry
Strict Jewish teenager Ruth (Natalie Press) returns from a faith-affirming visit to Israel to care for her dying mother (Julia Swift). It is her mother's wish to be reunited with her estranged son David (Joel Chalfen) before she dies. In accordance with her demands, Ruth tracks down her brother, who has become incredibly cynical about his family’s faith. Despite their obvious differences, brother and sister find themselves disconcertingly drawn together by the oppression of North London’s Jewish community. Their relationship soon becomes dangerously intense and steps into the realms of incest.
Ruth tries hard to learn the Torah to further strengthen her faith, but to her distress becomes quickly disillusioned with these religious scriptures. Her carnal brother, who has developed an unhealthy fascination with his sister’s body since his return, decides to teach her his own self-gratifying version of the Torah.
As the synopsis suggests, Song of Songs is by no means an easy film to watch. Incest is an uneasy subject at the best of times and London's Orthodox Jewish community is a culture seldom visited by British film, which makes for very little common ground between us and Appignanesi’s solemn psychodrama.
Despite its best efforts at provoking moral questions about religious and sexual taboos, Song of Songs alienates rather than inspires its audience. For a film that examines the deviant psychologies of a pair of troubled young adults, it proves to be a bit of an empty vessel. The characters lack depth and there is no obvious motivation for their behaviour.
The film begins with atheist David asking the provocative question 'Who is your father?' There is certainly nothing wrong with asking this question, but when David suggests that by following your desires, man does not fall into moral depravity, he develops into a higher being one can’t help but wonder if Appignanesi has opened a can of worms by placing incest in this context, especially since audience sympathy with his stilted, strange characters isn’t high on the agenda. Press stunned us in My Summer of Love and she tries her best here, but unfortunately her talent doesn’t overcome this fumbled fusion of sex, philosophy and blasphemy.
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