To say that Jorge Jácome’s latest film, Super Natural is experimental would be an insult to understatements. There is no plot. There aren’t really any characters. There is no dialogue, unless you count the subtitles that come from who knows where. It doesn’t seem to be set in any particular place. The first 30 seconds are just a silent black screen, until the words appear “Have we started yet”?’ accompanied by a high pitched screeching sound, followed by another minute of darkness and silence. And yet, for all of this film’s extreme weirdness, and I use that term advisedly, Super Natural is a completely engrossing work of art.
That’s because, despite the lack of any other facet of a normal film, the movie has, at its heart, a profound mystery that holds the audience’s attention. Super Natural is more of an experience than a film in the traditional sense. It is at once extremely playful, engaging and profound. It somehow managed to be a joke and at the same time also a serious dive into the nature of life on earth, sex and death. Along the journey we encounter screaming fruits, primordial soup, crudely drawn birds and bizarre and disorienting camera effects. But we can’t help trying to figure out who’s doing the talking.
At first, the subtitles, with their ever-present screeching sound, seem to be addressing the audience. We don’t know where we are. We don’t know who’s talking. Gradually we move from a black screen to a colourful screen, to recognizable images. But we never get much clearer about who’s talking to us. But one thing is clear, the voices really seem as though they’re addressing us personally. At first, I thought the subtitles were meant to represent some kind of socially inept Artificial Intelligence. Later, I wondered if I was going on a journey with some alien life force that had just arrived on the planet for the first time and was trying to make sense of what it saw. Eventually there are hints about who is doing the talking, although the hints are not entirely convincing. Still, the feeling of arrival is pervasive. So is the feeling of a blurring lines. Where does the fruit end and person eating it begin.? We are, as the subtitles notice, many bodies inside of bodies. Over an image of a woman with tiny five-fingered gloves on each finger, we hear the statement: ‘No one ever lets go of another’s hand,’ The voice seems to be addressing us, and then exploring the world. Eventually we wonder if there is any distinction between the two journeys.
One of the key elements of successful modern art is its ability to turn the audience into active participants. A good example of this is the giant sculpture known as ‘The Bean’ in Chicago (its real name is Cloud Gate). Part of the fascination with it is that passersby can see themselves reflected in it and inevitably feel compelled to take pictures of their own distorted images. When it comes to film, recreating the experience of direct involvement is possibly even harder. Of course, the audience of a murder mystery plays along, trying to figure out who did it. But this is still passive involvement. Where Super Natural succeeds is precisely its ability to draw the audience into its mysterious world in a way that feels direct, immersive and personal.
As far as experimental films go, this one is both stranger and more accessible than most. This may seem like a paradox, but it is a real credit to the director that he’s been able to pull off such a feat. From a technical standpoint, too, the film is quite astonishing.
Although it may not seem like it at first, this film was in fact created by human beings here on earth. Namely, Portuguese-born Jorge Jácome. Among his previous films are the shorts Flores (2017), which tells the tale of an invasion of hydrangeas (yes, you heard that right) and Past Perfect, which involves archaeology. Super Natural has its world premiere at this year’s Berlinale Film Festival. And although, as mentioned, the film seems to have been created by human hands, I prefer to think of it simply as an artifact that exists outside of time and space. One thing is for certain: this film will change the way you see the world.