For all the sadness and terrifying places that Ester Martin Bergsmark’s latest film takes us there is so much triumph and disclosure on the journey. After all the suffering we feel for the characters in this film it tears you apart. If Something Must Break doesn’t break you, you are either an incredible, strong soul or you are already broken.
In a pleasurable cinematographic experience of high resolution slow motion sequences and gritty, stunning landscapes of Stockholm is a tale of finding love and finding yourself.
Sebastian, an androgynous and soft-spoken man who spends much of him time in the dangerous night life of Sweden is saved by Andreas one night before he is brutally beaten in a men’s room. Andreas maintains, “I’m not gay” but finds Sebastian to be beautiful nonetheless. If someone told you “You’re so beautiful it makes me want to vomit,” what would you do? What could you do when all you feel is right is being with that person?
The two of them become entangled in Sebastian’s identity. He yearns to be “Ellie”, his alter ego that he refers to in his most private moments as his dream sister. He tries to destroy himself in order to rise out of the ashes as Ellie and be happy. Some of the cinematography in these existential moments reminds audiences of Danish director Lars Von Trier and his film Antichrist – another example of an excellent film that delves into gender and identity.
For a while it seems Sebastian has risen out of his own shadow and embraced Ellie just as it appears Andreas has embraced Ellie. But more and more Ellie can see Andreas is cowardly. This character development throughout the film matures delicately and deliciously. We slowly see Andreas is fun and he truly loves Sebastian but he is also selfish. Bergsmark is daring enough to show love as it really is; brutal and tumultuous.
Sometimes lovers make love in a rough, slapping, punching and pushing way because it is easier to play-fight then reveal your true concerns and aggressions. Sometimes a lovers’ quarrel is more painful when few words are said at all. Actress Saga Becker and actor Iggy Malmborg, both relatively new faces, display this superbly in Something Must Break.
Finally something does break and it is both crushing and conquering for Sebastian. By the end of the film all we want is for Sebastian and Ellie to be happy. They are one and the same, interchanging always. The undertones of punk culture and rebelling against those who won’t let you be who you want to be is an excellent backdrop to this honest story which begins as a tale of love and ends as a story about loving yourself.
Review Score: FOUR STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Something Must Break screened as part of the Sydney Film Festival.
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