Silent Land

Saturday, March 19 / 3:00pm / ByTowne cinema

The First Goodbye / Silent Land

Feature presentation \

travel \ strangers in a strange land \ couple in crisis

When a stylish, well-heeled Polish couple arrive for a dream vacation on an Italian island, things do not exactly go as planned. The first thing they notice at their vacation rental home is that the swimming pool is empty. Apologetic, their bumbling Italian host swiftly sends over a migrant worker to fix the situation. The young Arab man immediately faces a language barrier, much to the exasperation of the couple. Then he has a serious accident while working on the pool. Suddenly, the local police become involved and start asking the Polish couple how much they know. Forbidden from leaving, they are soon confronted by unsettling questions not only about what happened, but also about the very underpinnings of their relationship. This tense, tautly constructed debut feature film by the talented Aga Woszczyńska is reminiscent of the work of Ruben Ostlund and Michael Haneke. Gripping.

- Tom McSorley

Short film \