Time of the Wolf is an essay on absurdism that never fully reaches its potential.
The movie starts off very well with a strong scene setting up the tone for the rest of the film. But then it loses itself in the brutality of the situation. Rather than exploring the impact of this event on the character's mental state and personality, we are presented to their dehumanization with almost no sense of purpose or morality.
Haneke applied a different tone to this movie compared to his previous works. Although we experience a lot of absurdism in his other movies, we also can relate to or understand some characters or situations depicted in them (Funny Games being a famous exception). But on this one, we can't relate to any character. They almost seem not human in a lot of circumstances.
The movie ends up navigating the thin line between absurdism and nihilism without never truly defining itself.
See more on my Letterboxd profile.
The movie starts off very well with a strong scene setting up the tone for the rest of the film. But then it loses itself in the brutality of the situation. Rather than exploring the impact of this event on the character's mental state and personality, we are presented to their dehumanization with almost no sense of purpose or morality.
Haneke applied a different tone to this movie compared to his previous works. Although we experience a lot of absurdism in his other movies, we also can relate to or understand some characters or situations depicted in them (Funny Games being a famous exception). But on this one, we can't relate to any character. They almost seem not human in a lot of circumstances.
The movie ends up navigating the thin line between absurdism and nihilism without never truly defining itself.
See more on my Letterboxd profile.