Take the moment right now to etch Daniel Boocock’s name in your memory banks. Three years and one shortfilm credit in with The Desolate One, the Norwegian filmmaker is on a mission to leave an indelible mark as an emerging film talent from his Claret & Blue banner, which may just be the result he gets if his newest short, The Neolith, is any hint.
“Too much animal distorts the civilised man.
Too much civilization makes sick animals.” – CARL JUNGAmidst a beautiful and unforgiving landscape in an unknowable time and place, a mysterious individual takes action against a pack of bloodthirsty outsiders whose thirst for dominance is thriving, with brutal and bloody consequences…
A bold, innovative and visually stunning short work, The Neolith recalls the fantastic realism and epic scope of Vikings and Game of Thrones while remaining entirely unique in its storytelling and style. Combining aspects of mysticism, Jungian theories of the shadow self and Gnosticism, the film defies interpretation leaving powerfully raw and violent images that linger in the mind.
And note: There isn’t a single line of dialogue for the first ten minutes, and even then, don’t exactly expect this to be a conversational drama. The way it’s written, structured and scored is such in a way that the short reassures viewers with a tone suitably immersive in nature, and from a director that clearly knew what he was doing, how to do it and why.
Initially crowdfunded via Indiegogo in 2018, this thing is as beautiful as it is brutal, soaked in blood, dirt and brooding, and visually, and audibly bewitching with its Kulning vocals.
Shot with near boundless cinematography by Andrew Schonfelder and music by Nordic folk musician Danheim, The Neolith is now available online to watch, and stars Jake Corrie, Dan Boie Kratfeldt and Lasse Voss, with Jacob Skyggebjerg, Jesper Møeller and Nanna Lyhne Andersen.
Watch this shortfilm in the quietest room possible.
