It's
not a pleasant experience being absent of a job, despite what
some lazy people may want you to believe (luckily, I`m one
of those lazy people with employment). While it might seem
great to have all the time in the world in your hands; to
not have to punch a timeclock for someone who gives you grief,
not receiving any money is a small drawback to having no responsibilities
in the workforce. Welfare isn`t so hot either, because in
some cases at the very least, you would be making more money
by working, and welfare can`t always pay the bills. The flipside
is when somebody really wants to look for work, but can`t
find any. The frustration arises when one can`t find, or,
even worse, keep a job. You may find such difficulties very
nasty, but would you act as Rosetta does when she can`t keep
a job. I really hope you don't!
Rosetta
is about one crazy job seeker. Granted, she`s nuts because
she is in a dire situation. She lives in a trailer park, where
her mother is a drunk and under the landlord`s becking call,
as he gives her booze and expects sexual favours. This all
means that Rosetta has to run the household, yet this is very
difficult when she can`t keep a job to save her life. And
she does not go quietly when asked to leave. There are two
scenes in this movie in which she openly attacks people in
vain hope that she can keep her job, including the first scene
in which she beats up her boss and then runs away from security,
and the direction is so fast-paced and dizzying, that if you
turned on the video at this point, you may start mistaking
this for a really cheap chase movie.
The
true plot of the movie involves her relationship with a young
man who works at a waffle stand. She is able to get a job
working at his boss's food production plant, but a few weeks
later she is let go, and, yet again, creates a scene, including
one pathetic moment where she continues frantically to do
the job (pouring a bag of flour into the large tanks), and
when the boss tries to take the bag from her, she falls to
the ground, desperately clutching the bag. After this scene,
things truly get bizarre, as Rosetta subtly weasels her way
into her supposed friend`s territory. He tries to help her
out, but she wants it all, and to do this, she commits not
one but two shocking acts.
Well,
clearly Rosetta is one disturbed girl. Somehow I find her
a bit unbelievable - sure, some people get mad, but would
they really do what they do, including (spoiler!) attempt
to murder her friend so she could take over his job. Overall,
she is not a very interesting person, because she is insanely
obsessed with getting work. This is evident when the friend
gets a surprise visit from Rosetta, and attempts to give her
good company. She mopes about at the dinner table, does not
enjoy herself when he offers her to dance to his band`s music,
and then suddenly gets cramps (something which happens often
in the film) and runs off, as if she is somehow getting too
close to another person. Perhaps she is afraid because she
sees what happens to other women (like her mom) who find themselves
with men who turn out to be monsters. And on that score, there
is a really odd and ugly little moment in which it seems as
if this guy is trying to rape her. This is when he comes over
to the house on his motorbike and tells her that his boss
will hire her. What he actually does is come over, and, as
Rosetta looks in shock at the fact that he knows where she
lives, then throws her down on the ground, and proceeds to
trap her with his fondling and aggression, before saying what
he came over to say. What the f-- is this for?? The truth
is that Rosetta does not see him as a friend, but as an obstacle,
which would be apparent without the attempted rape, but with
it, you wonder if there is not something symbolic in her attempts
to discard him. Maybe this is her revenge for what has happened
to people like her and her mother.
No
matter what the issues are, she is not a very sympathetic
character. Her actions make you wonder if you really ought
to be rooting for this girl. No doubt this would be a good
instructional tape for managers, as it outlines the type of
personality you don`t want working in your establishment (One
who doesn`t beat up the employees, one who doesn`t murder
as a form of promotion, etc, etc). Too bad that this movie
wasn`t made before one of my employers hired somebody who
capped off her illustrious career in the restaurant business
by promptly pounding the crap out of another waitress when
the tossing of utensils wouldn`t do the trick.
The
film`s style evokes two sources: the Dogma approach, with
the hand-held cameras, the absence of a soundtrack, and raw
performances (although this does not look anywhere near as
cheap as, say, The Celebration), and, also, Robert Bresson
(Mouchette), with the film`s depicting of grinding poverty
and its psychological effects, and the director`s insistence
on showing mundane activity in its entirety. I enjoyed this
film for its daring to depict such a crazed character, and
for its technical influnences, although it does occassionally
drag during its attempts to imitate Bresson. Overall, Rosetta
is a good example of a very non-Hollywood film can look like.
David
Macdonald
David
Macdonald's Movie Reviews
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