Given its incredibly slow pace, Found Memories is not for everyone. With the same company shared for years until near retirement, it takes a long while for this sleepy town to wake up, and it only happens when a new character enters the town. However, for viewers who are patient enough, the film contemplates how easy it is to get lulled into routine. It can be boring. It can be a way that keeps one stuck in life. But it can be beautiful. As Rita learns their rhythms from baker Madalena, and Madalena gets to know her, Found Memories reflects on life and death, in a visually poetic way.
"A pic immersed in the passage of time."
— Jay Weissberg
Each citizen of Jotuomba plays an integral role in village life. Madalena is responsible for baking bread; each morning she stacks her rolls as Antonio prepares the coffee. The two share a morning ritual of arguments and insults, followed by an amicable cup of coffee on the bench outside Antonio's shop. At midday the church bells ring, summoning the villagers to mass. In the early evening, they all share a meal together. And so life proceeds in Jotuomba, the days languidly drifting into one another; the only variations seem to be in the weather. But, one day Rita arrives looking for a place to stay.
The secluded village of Jotuomba finds its simple, quiet life interrupted when a young photographer named Rita comes to visit.
The pacing. It’s incredibly slow, but it makes sense for a premise like this.
The pacing is pretty hard to get through, but it’s the kind of film to watch if you’re wanting to reflect on life.
Venice
1 nomination
