In Florian Habicht's feature debut, garbageman Gert is charged with the task of transporting the mute Princess Plum to her wedding in a neighbouring town, a journey fraught with danger and romance.
Woodenhead is a cinematic curiosity that could only be made by a German born but New Zealand raised filmmaker. The plot is heavily indebted to Teutonic folk stories in the manner of the Brothers Grimm. If first impressions makes this concept seem disarmingly cutesy, the manner in which it is presented on screen is robustly experimental, lending it a dark, dreamlike aura. Just as the comforting fairytale template is twisted into strangely unfamiliar territory, the black and white photography re-imagines New Zealand's normally idyllic rural landscape as a gothic, quietly sinister setting. Heightening these surreal elements is the process by which the film was composed, with the soundtrack, both music and dialogue (supplied by voices not belonging to the on screen actors), recorded first and the visuals assembled around them.
Woodenhead was nominated in two categories at the 2003 New Zealand Film and Television Awards - Florian Habicht for best digital feature and cinematographer / co-editor Chris Pryor for best technical contribution.
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In "Woodenhead" Florian Habicht latches onto the Tilt-a-Whirl moment and tries to extend it to an hour and a half. He's not entirely successful, but the effort is awfully interesting. The Tilt-a-Whirl moment is that disorienting few seconds, after you get off the ride, when your senses aren't working properly: you reach for a friend's shoulder to steady yourself but grab his nose; you sit on what your eyes tell you is a bench, only to land in a baby carriage.
Full review
The film as a first feature is original in concept and is carried out with little hint to the viewer that there was not a lot of cash to spare. There is much to recommend the film for cineastes as well as the average film goer in terms of the plot and narrative, but to me its strength is the locations used and the originality in terms of look and sound of the actors.
Full reviewWoodenhead is available to stream in New Zealand now on NZ Film On Demand.
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