“Domestic” screened as part of the Chicago International Film Festival, where it had its American debut. This early review is merely an impression from the festival. It does not have an American release date.
Our extended family is Italian. Being loud, persistent talkers is just part of the dynamic. That anything funny or even profound can come out of the conversation at all is a triumph.
Although the families in “Domestic” are Romanian, director Adrian Sitaru has some absurd fun with this conceit: keep the chatter up as normal and see what surprises can come out of it.
“Domestic” is a household comedy following in the footsteps of several families and tenants in a single apartment building. The whole building is up in arms over a timid dog that has supposedly caused some problems. The landlord argues and discusses it with his wife and pre-teen girl one evening. It’s a conversation as normal, but Mom has just brought home a live hen for dinner. Mom assumes Dad will kill it, Dad doesn’t know why Mom bought it and the girl volunteers to take care of it… for a small fee.
Where did she learn how to do that? “That’s how kids in America make their money.” The scene seems to continue on in a loud, speedy argument for quite some time until finally there’s blood on the wall. We hear screeches from the bathroom down the hall, and the door swings open with the little girl humming and smiling as though this was a normal occurrence. On paper this seems grim if not downright surreal. But with a richly cultured audience who understands this family dynamic, it’s hilarious. Continue reading “CIFF Review: Domestic”