During the Holocaust, a young Jewish girl flees from the grasp of the Gestapo and finds herself stranded on an abandoned farm.
Aside from the tense and infrequently frantic opening scenes this WWII drama manages to traverse the usual trappings of its contemporaries. As Adira is secreted to a new location there is a noticeable shift in tone, the young girl must fend for herself for the first time and her journey becomes something akin to a coming of age tale. Watching this young woman survive in the isolated wilderness managed to evoke Robert Zemeckis’ Castaway in a way I hadn’t expected.
The visual language of Adira resonates with the often-dreamlike narration while the ramshackle setting offers a damning serenity that looks set to engulf the lonely girl at a moments notice. A richly resonant score punctuates the imagery throughout and would be well deserving of an isolated soundtrack release.
Lead actress Andrea Fantauzzi displays some deft character flourishes as she grows on screen, from forager to hunter, quarry to survivor. As the film progresses Fantauzzi seemingly runs with the YA heroine mantle and becomes an amalgam of numerous empowered protagonists. Even when a young male figure enters her world (with all his Dick Van Dyke’isms) she barely breaks her stride.
When a more prevailing threat emerges in the final third the pacing shifts a gear that comes close to dashing the energy earned up to that point. The focus realigns and the harshness of the film’s opening tone do well to remind the audience of Adira’s plight, however, the use of emotive imagery is a little heavy handed at just feels unnecessary at times. The final reel’s returning threat ramps up the suspense and resolves satisfyingly enough, although I personally could’ve done with one more brush with darkness before the credits rolled.
With elements of everything from The Book Thief to Castaway, and YA themes in its DNA this is a sturdy first feature from Irene Delmonte and Bradley J. Lincoln.
Adira is released on May 5th
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