The Tribe is the first feature film from writer/ director Miroslav Slaboshpitsky, and there is no doubt that, upon seeing it, it will stick with you. The story is a simple one, really – a teenager (Grigoriy Fesenko) starts at a new boarding school and immediately gets involved with the criminal activities of the fellow students, which leads to an obsessive love story and inevitable violence.
The unique nature of the film lies in the fact that there is no spoken dialogue. All the actors are deaf and communicate in sign language; there are also no subtitles. So, most of us are left in the dark about specific lines – even, for the most part, those who know Western sign language, as Ukrainian is used here. Not even Slaboshpitsky understands it; he had to have interpreters on set to communicate and make sure that the actors were sticking to the script.
I suppose a very good question, regarding the lack of subtitles, would be "Why?" Perhaps it is just to be awkward and pretentious - a bit arty-farty, if you will. Or perhaps it is to highlight the tribe’s alienation from us and the rest of the world, and their own connectedness. There are times within the film that I was confused by what was happening – or, to be more specific, why something was happening – but the further you get into the film, the more you realise that it suffices to just have a general gist of what is going on. It certainly keeps you eyes on the action and the brilliantly choreographed scenes, in which every one is completed in just a single shot (a style I am a total sucker for).
The only thing it really hinders is the presence of humour – there are a couple of flashes of it, but dialogue may have presented a bit more. There is also no music; just the natural sounds of cars, footsteps, the occassional noise from the deaf characters, etc... This, along with the long takes, make any bursts of violence all the more shocking, even for my - possibly - desensitised self.
Although there are no redeeming or likable characters, the whole thing borders on being gimmicky, and at least fifteen minutes of the 130 minute running time must be just the actors putting clothes on or taking them off, The Tribe is a bold, great looking film which is utterly engrossing and utterly unforgettable.
The Tribe is showing at Broadway Cinema until Thursday 4 June 2015.
The Tribe trailer
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