Pingyao 2023 Review: CALM IN THE CANOPY Unveils Paranoid Abyss of Privileged Masculinity

In a meticulously crafted narrative, Calm in the Canopy unveils a descent into paranoia and existential apprehension, marking an atmospheric exploration of a self-fashioned abyss. Penned by Václav Kadrnka and Marek Šindelka, the sophomore feature by Czech director Michal Hogenauer transcends the individual, reflecting broader societal anxieties in its dissection of a solitary man's psyche.

Calm in the Canopy charts the narrative of a privileged, middle-aged man, M. (Pavel Gajdoš), upon his return from a business excursion alongside a colleague. An altercation arises during a security check when a passenger alleges racial profiling due to his Arab ethnicity.

The accosted passenger confronts M. in the men's restroom shortly after the altercation with the airport security, leveraging an accusation after glimpsing M.'s address tag on his luggage, rendering M. both speechless and somewhat confused. It's at this juncture that a xenophobic paranoia is triggered within M.

The disconcerting encounter catalyzes a spiral of paranoia within M., his imagination unfurling wildly upon discovering his apartment door ostensibly forced open. Hogenauer melds elements of a thriller with a lo-fi detective narrative as M. endeavors to deduce the identity of his pursuer, while taking measures to avert any interaction with the enigmatic, and in M.'s perception, non-white, stranger.

This fixation gradually morphs into a pathological state, estranging him from the external world and the sparse relationships in his life. M.'s incessant paranoia serves as a reflection of the escalating apprehensions pervasive within contemporary, notably European, societies, emanating from unidentified threats to disruptions in their accustomed tranquility.

Hogenauer made his entrance with the social psychothriller, A Certain Kind of Silence, delving into collective delusion and its societal repercussions. Calm in the Canopy, while treading similar thematic territory, pivots from examining a familial unit ensnared in a cultish milieu to spotlighting an individual's self-engendered paranoia.

The story shift resonates beyond the individual, echoing broader societal dialogues around crises of masculinity and patriarchal structures. It holds a mirror to the subtle currents of apprehension coursing through contemporary culture.

Although anchored in contemporary anxieties, the narrative transcends a mere metaphorical representation of the present or a stand-in for collective phenomena. By honing in on a singular individual, emblematic of wider societal apprehensions, the story magnifies personal fears into larger concerns surrounding community and societal cohesion.

The approach renders the film both intimate and expansive, portraying a narrative as personally ingrained as it is societally reflective. It juxtaposes M.'s internal anxiety against the external calmness of the world, building towards a climax that challenges one's perceptions of reality.

In his inaugural venture, the Czech director exhibited a near-clinical embrace of formalism through meticulously crafted frames, a style that persists in Calm in the Canopy, albeit with a more economical narrative approach and a pared-down character ensemble orbiting M. This reduction accentuates themes of isolation and alienation, factors that exacerbate M.'s deteriorating mental state and further dislodge his grasp on reality.

Hogenauer navigates the crossroads of arthouse drama and genre filmmaking, a methodology initiated in his debut and perpetuated in this sophomore feature. This stylistic continuity elucidates why the film's writer and producer, Václav Kadrnka, enlisted Hogenauer to bring the screenplay to life on screen.

Calm in the Canopy blends a social psychothriller with a more introspective drama, with the turmoil chiefly internalized within the protagonist. Unlike Hogenauer's preceding work A Certain Kind of Silence which unfolds within a high-end household governed by peculiar rules, his sophomore film adopts a less sterile art direction.

Sterility, however, remains a thematic motif, though it's reflected less in M.'s contemporary apartment, and is more manifest in his day job. In this professional sphere, M. serves as a sales representative, peddling uniquely scented products, specifically, a novel concoction melding the aromas of petrol, leather, cedar, and rose.

Hogenauer's cinematic approach, akin to Michael Haneke's realm as evidenced in A Certain Kind of Silence, shifts towards a more observative style in Calm in the Canopy. This sophomore feature is characterized by its economical dialogue — a hallmark of Kadrnka’s signature style — while predominantly employing medium and close-up shots, inclusive of extreme close-ups. The stylistic choice draws parallels to Haneke's debut, The Seventh Continent, encapsulating similarly the ennui of the middle class and its undoing.

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