NOTHING IS LOST – film review [ENG]

Nothing is Lost is a unique representation of excellent polish cinematography and an excellent example of a smart and well-balanced comedy-drama. Aesthetically pleasing and immensely amusing! Not only are professional acting skills admired, but also the intelligent wit of the film. It talks about a group of people facing a terrible sickness of modern society – loneliness. Bright and ridiculous! 

The piece is a debut in full-length films for its director Kalina Alabrudzińska. Without a doubt, she can be proud of her work. Nevertheless, Nothing is Lost is not only special to her but also to numerous actors who played in it. For the students of the fourth year of the Acting Department at the National Film School in Łódź, it was their graduation film. In the performance, they showed great maturity and a wide range of playing skills.

Everything is cozy, and we all are equally sitting in a little circle inside a therapeutic room with warm colours of the walls and an old wooden floor. Sometimes we take a break for sandwiches but what we mostly do is talk. That is what people do in therapy sessions after all, right? But here you will surely not get bored. The leader of the session is played by genius Dobromir Dymecki whose penetrating light blue eyes will engrave its memory in your head. Personally, his acting was my favourite – his devotion to the role was very noticeable. He has calmness, seriousness and an unforced funniness. His character gave me a burst of proper laughter.

In the therapy, there are five main participants: an actor (Piotr Pacek), constantly seeking for other’s attention and admiration; Klaudia (Zuzanna Puławska), unable to stop herself from helping others; Maja (Wiktoria Filus), whose entire life is focused on everything else, but not on her; Donatello (Michał Surosz), who feels most comfortable in a company of turtles; and a closed-off and seemingly cold Przemek (Jan Hrynkiewicz), fanatical lover of his motherland and „the only smart one in the stupid society”.

What we see in this incredible mixture of characters is surely an intriguing, funny but yet very intelligent film which Nothing is Lost, without a doubt, exemplifies. The acting was impeccable. You can see all the spectrum of emotions or even thoughts running through the minds of the main characters – embarrassment, joy, or even inner struggle. Artists turned the possible disadvantage, which was a small budget, into an incredible film characterized by a fantastic script and an excellent art of acting.

The aesthetics of Nothing is Lost also caught my eye. The director built a warm and peaceful environment. It strongly corresponds with the intimate atmosphere of the film where everyone could eventually open up and expose the naked truth about themselves. We experience natural warm colours and the calm camera. Moreover, the importance of nature should be mentioned. Plants in the film are somewhat a metaphor of the inner peace and harmony of a human. This is something, which the therapy participants are looking and longing for. Nevertheless, this element could be better exposed as it could make the plot and general perception of the film even more intriguing.

However, the therapy room is not the only place where we can meet and learn about the participants. The scenes when we can observe their personal or even intimate life outside the therapeutical environment are a crucial element which deepens the creation of the characters. Not only do they help the viewer to know the characters better but also they also enable us to understand or even relate to them. With these scenes, Nothing is Lost becomes much more personal and sometimes a surprisingly relatable piece of art. However, these scenes, even though they give us an inside of how characters’ lives look, they also leave a viewer wanting more. What we mostly receive are characters’ interactions within the group and their subjective view on own lives without a further explanation which could create an even more deepened and complex personality of the characters.

Moreover, there were scenes when I was getting a feeling of a cliché. Despite the wit by which the film bought me, sometimes I was feeling like the easiest path was taken. Occasionally it feels like the film was made in a rush. Certain scenes could be more creative. Hence, the biggest mistake of Nothing is Lost is the sometimes unused potential it has. The greatest focus has been put into the acting, so many of the other film’s important elements have been neglected. It is crucial to equally include all the parts together so that the masterpiece can be complete.

Despite a few disadvantages it has, it is a wonderful film. Not only it is entertaining but it also welcomes us to a fantastic environment where all of us can be who we are, not judged, not picked on. The film is intelligent and funny. Feel welcomed to Nothing is Lost. Watch it and feel it. Laugh and think. Nothing is Lost.