Director Fil Ieropulos and writer Foivos Dousos bring us a rebellious and visual treat with their bold film Uchronia. Wonderfully uncompromising, this aesthetically rich docudrama grabs you and never lets go.
Arthur Rimbaud has died, but his ghost has not yet passed on as he travels through time, observing where queer history has gone over the decades and centuries, all while linking back to his work Une Saison en Enfer.
Uchronia is a film that walks a dangerous tightrope, as if it might fall into pretentiousness at any moment. However, it makes it the whole way across by being a sheer force of art, politics and history melded into one unconventional, engrossing film. It dares us to do something like what those before us did, while also showing the importance of what they did and accepting the challenges of the past as well as those of modern times.
When we go through these eras, we see how (rightly) proud we should be of the accomplishments of those who fought and celebrated the queer identity. You feel the pride in seeing how far we’ve come, yet there is always a thread of anger running through the film. We should be far further along the road to progressiveness, not in this horrible situation where identity is being stripped away and, at times, pushed to the point of internal conflict.
The immersive nature of the film captures your attention, and its fluidity throughout brings a certain joy to you as a viewer, not only in the topics presented to us but also in the performances, the multiple languages used and accepted throughout the 97-minute runtime. It indulges itself (sometimes too much, as we will get into), but you can still be impressed by how it tackles not only history but also current topics.
The use of Une Saison en Enfer as a chapter guide for Uchronia is a fantastic touch, allowing us to follow along in a structured way. Yet the fragmented nature of the film keeps the audience on their toes as topics overlap or are left and never picked up again. It’s abstract filmmaking done mostly right as Ireopoulos tosses in flourishes left, right and centre. What is clear, though, is that the evolution of the public’s acceptance of queerness is seemingly never-ending. Rimbaud encounters countless historical figures, and we rarely feel we are seeing that light at the end of the tunnel.
Rather, we are given a film that prefers to present the past to us, almost as a chaotic philosophical history lesson, and asks us how we interpret it and, importantly, what we are to do next. Does the audience sit and contemplate their viewing, return to the status quo, and allow queerness to be represented, challenged, and attacked as it clearly has been for so long? Or do they try to make the difference that is needed? Instead of providing us with the answers, we are given an urgent question, which is utterly fantastic.
There is, however, a limit to how bold and forthright a film like Uchronia can be. At times, the film becomes too much of a challenge, as monologues get lost in themselves, leaving audiences, especially casual viewers, a little alienated. There are plenty of opportunities to tone down the script’s excessive referentiality and almost academic tone, so it can welcome a larger audience. It certainly deserves to be seen by as wide an audience as possible, but by taking the route it does, it slightly hinders itself. Despite that, you soon get the strong, clear impression that there was never any intention or consideration to make this for such an audience. It is its own piece, its own art, and you bring your knowledge with you, expecting no assistance. While applaudable, these are not conducive to younger audience members (even if this is brought up within the film itself).
Yet, when Uchronia is good, it’s fantastic, engaging, and everything you want a film like this to be. To challenge you just enough while making you want to talk about it. Despite its flaws, which at times seem like it is taking an early victory lap, it invites reflection and discussion. When it comes down to it, isn’t that what we want all art to do?
Unapologetic almost to a fault, Uchronia will grab and keep your attention.
★★★ 1/2
Uchronia is showing at BFI FLARE now. For ticket info, go here.
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