The Turin Horse (2011)

 

This is a bleak dystopian view of the end times.  Béla Tarr describes this as his final film (he was in his mid-50's when it was made, but if this is your world view in film then you could see why you would need to quit)--it is Nietzsche-inspired with a Cormac McCarthy ending.

My spouse and I have been watching movies that our youngest son is watching in his film analysis class, and while the vast majority of them have been quite interesting, I confess that I really do not get this one.  It was shown during the week that they were learning about cinematography, and the cinematography is spectacular--it is shot all in black and white, there are largely just 2 characters, one horse, one modest stone farm, and a windy desolate landscape to work with, so it is especially remarkable.   This seemed to fit better with the segment on boredom and the whole 'slow movie' movement--it was certainly more lively than an Andy Warhol movie of the Empire State building (4 hours of film on a building that more or less does nothing).  Okay, this has more going on than that, but not by orders of magnitude.  Béla Tarr is known as a slow film guy, with a previous work that clocks in at 450 minutes, and I am going out on a limb here, but I am betting not a chase scene to be found. 

Here is a story, told in 6 days, of a man, his daughter, and their horse who live a meager existence.  One boiled potato a day.  No eating utensils.  Warm clothes, brandy,  and a beautifully built stone house are their luxuries--heat and food are not.  Soon they lose even water.  Then fire.  Then light.  The end.