A road movie. An unorthodox crime story. Portrait of an unlikely companionship. Belgian director Caroline Strubbe’s uniquely crafted second feature combines all of these to tell the moving story of a man and a child in mourning as they journey through Western Europe.
A road movie. An unorthodox crime story. Portrait of an unlikely companionship. Belgian director Caroline Strubbe's uniquely crafted second feature, I'm the same I'm an other, combines all of these to tell the moving story of a man and a child in mourning as they journey through Western Europe.
Szabolcs (Zoltán Miklós Hajdu), a scruffy thirty-year-old, speeds a car down an unspecified highway. His young companion, nine-year-old Tess (Kimke Desart), sits in the back. Their interactions are riddled with tension, but we don't yet understand why. As they make their way to a harbour, we slowly come to realize that they are on the run from something. Deep in the bowels of a passenger ferry, Szabolcs does his best to hide Tess's presence. A tragic discovery thrusts their relationship into a completely different realm. After disembarking from the ferry, they settle into a new home for themselves in a small, seaside cottage, where Szabolcs becomes father figure to the obsessive-compulsive Tess.
At once tough and tender, I'm the same
I'm an other is an eerie vision full of telling
silences and subtle gestures. Beautiful
widescreen, desaturated cinematography,
guided by Strubbe's sensitive eye, offers us
striking passages set against a picturesque landscape. Built from an exceptional collection
of details, the film asks for your
patience — and rewards it with a precise,
distilled portrait of a relationship.
CAMERON BAILEY