Update: KinoLober has picked up the U.S. rights “Alps” with plans to release it in spring 2012. Also there is a new clip from the film courtesy of Flix below.
While “Alps” hasn’t quite caught on in the way Yorgos Lanthimos’ previous effort “Dogtooth” did, there is no denying that it’s another distinct work from a director who doesn’t mind nudging and provoking his audience. Yes, he’s got another oddball story to tell, this time centering on a group of people who agree to stand in for the lost loved ones of others, replicating their behavior and gestures, to help with the grieving process. But of course, that’s just the beginning of a movie that has a much deeper thematic reach, and as our review from Venice noted, “that anyone who insists on definitive answers will be disappointed; this is a film to argue about with friends in the lobby until the theater staff throw you out.”
Well, we’ll have to wait a bit yet to see it in theaters, so until then here’s the new Greek teaser trailer for the film. It’s mostly wordless anyhow (though hit CC get the captions), but no less evocative, delivering about a minute’s worth of various scenes from the movie, out of context, yet nonetheless intriguingly enigmatic. It’s all at once slyly funny, unnerving and just plain weird, which pretty much makes us want to see it even more.
Unfortunately, there is no U.S. distribution in place yet for “Alps” (the film has been picked up for Canada by Films We Like) so this trailer will have to hold you over for now. Watch below. [AUEB Film Club/The Match Factory]