Aris Bafaloukas/Greece/2010/87 min/NC 15+
Shown as part of Glasgow Film Festival @ Cineworld, 18th -19th February.
Apnea is an unusually stylised and impressionistic film by first-time director Aris Bafaloukas. Taking its name from the technique swimmers use to hold their breath underwater, it uses flashback to show the events leading up to the disappearance of competitive swimmer Dimitri’s (Sotiris Pastras) girlfriend, environmental activist Elsa (Youlika Skafida), as well as their earlier meeting and the blossoming of their relationship.
Pastras is very much the strong silent type, and his dark handsome looks make watching him swimming a not unpleasant aesthetic experience. His driven, competitive nature and apparent ease underwater underline his difficulties forging relationships and gradually imbue the story with guilt and heartache as we learn more of Elsa’s side of the story. Elegantly shot, the bold use of colour and superimposition give Apnea a distinctive and inventive visual style, coupled with the curious interweaving of narrative strands, a dreamlike and meditative atmosphere is created. Complex, poetic, haunting and original, Apnea is an assured and striking piece of work.