Response on Septien When reviewing Michael Tully’s quirky film Septien, one is bound to have a confused and shocking face once the screening room lights turn on. The presented themes and subject matter is very new to an audience, as Tully expresses his ideas in a very unique way. The film is an independent production since it speaks to a very niche target audience. This film is not mainstream cinema, and not everyone will enjoy the film because it deals with strong grotesque themes, such as erotic art, Satanism, drugs and alcohol, and homosexuality. Not to mention, the plot is very confusing and things don’t seem to make sense. It looks impossible for one to pitch this film to production companies, much less Hollywood executives, which is why the film is independent. It appears to have been made with a very low budget, as Tully only uses few locations and a minimal production value. That being said, the visual aesthetics of the film are spot on: The cinematography is very pleasing to the eye with its soft look and raw, handheld camera movements, and the production design helps develop the strange world of the Rawling brothers: the tire on the yard, the dirty bathroom, the room with the two beds, and Amos’ studio space in the garage. The dialogue is also quite creative, very comedic at times, but it contrasts with the suggested idea that ‘life is miserable’.
The story-line has no recognizable overture, development and resolution, as the audience is left with unanswered questions all the time. For example, we never know why Cornelius leaves his home in the first place, and why decides to come back after so many years. It is suggested midway past the film that it had something to do with a football game and something Red Rooster told him or did to him. But we never find out why he left because when Ezra asks Cornelius what he (Red Rooster) did to him, the preacher interrupts the scene with his entrance. At no other point in the film is this question answered and we are left wondering.
The characters are childlike at times and speak with comedic dialogue. But the movie shows a messed up character study by the way it presents its characters in strange situations. Ezra is a gay germ freak, always cleaning the house, and he acts as an awkward mother figure. Cornelius is very quiet; he drinks and does drugs, and is somehow a prodigy athlete. Amos is the childlike artist that draws grotesque
