Man of Aran

Aransaarten mies / Mannen från Aran. GB (c) 1934 Gainsborough Pictures. P: Michael Balcon. D+SC+DP: Robert J. Flaherty. M: John Greenwood. ED: John Goldman. FEATURING: Colman "Tiger" King (A Man of Aran), Maggie Dirrane (His Wife), Michael Dirrane (Their Son), Pat Mullin (Shark Hunter). 77 min. Print: Cinemateket / Svenska Filminstitutet. Viewed at Cinema Orion (DocPoint), Helsinki, 26 Jan 2010

Revisited the great film about people facing the elements on the islands of Aran, to the West of Ireland, in the special circumstances of which the storm waves of the Atlantic Ocean reach the sky. The film was criticized in its time of neglecting contemporary concerns and problems, but Flaherty had a completely different perspective.

It is a reconstructed vision based on the timeless theme of the battle of survival. The islanders perform a family and reconstruct ancient ways to catch basking sharks. There is Melvillean dignity in the shark sequence.

A poetic vision with a sense of the elements and a story of perseverance.