Educational Media Reviews Online

Filipino Director Lav Diaz is a major star in the “slow cinema” movement, which is often described as contemplative and observational and, in Diaz’s case, long. Norte, the End of History clocks in at four hours and ten minutes and fits on two DVDs. Diaz is known for the length of his films, some at eight and eleven hours long and Norte is his take on Dostoyevski’s Crime and Punishment. It takes place in the economically struggling town of Paoay, north of Manila where he refocuses the classic narrative to emphasize his particular on-going themes of class, money and education. The film is beautifully composed and shot and exhibits a deep visual sensibility.

Norte can be meditative or irritating, depending on one’s perspective. Shots bridging two scenes, such as a still shot of traffic on a freeway can last for what feels like eternity; a brief question in a scene between two people followed by a brief reply can have interminably long pauses between sentences. The types of shots where one sees a person thinking for an extended period of time for no narrative-driven reason forces viewers to concentrate or alternately allows viewers to let their minds wander. In either case, viewers become aware of their decisions and their reactions to those decisions. This reveals the difference between traditional cinematic conventions and rather authentic fictionalizations of reality. It is certainly not documentary but basically deeply observational fiction.

I recommend this film although I found it more admirable than enjoyable. It is suitable for film studies and literary studies collections.