“Domestic” screened as part of the Chicago International Film Festival, where it had its American debut. This early review is merely an impression from the festival. It does not have an American release date.
Our extended family is Italian. Being loud, persistent talkers is just part of the dynamic. That anything funny or even profound can come out of the conversation at all is a triumph.
Although the families in “Domestic” are Romanian, director Adrian Sitaru has some absurd fun with this conceit: keep the chatter up as normal and see what surprises can come out of it.
“Domestic” is a household comedy following in the footsteps of several families and tenants in a single apartment building. The whole building is up in arms over a timid dog that has supposedly caused some problems. The landlord argues and discusses it with his wife and pre-teen girl one evening. It’s a conversation as normal, but Mom has just brought home a live hen for dinner. Mom assumes Dad will kill it, Dad doesn’t know why Mom bought it and the girl volunteers to take care of it… for a small fee.
Where did she learn how to do that? “That’s how kids in America make their money.” The scene seems to continue on in a loud, speedy argument for quite some time until finally there’s blood on the wall. We hear screeches from the bathroom down the hall, and the door swings open with the little girl humming and smiling as though this was a normal occurrence. On paper this seems grim if not downright surreal. But with a richly cultured audience who understands this family dynamic, it’s hilarious.
Suddenly the movie shifts to a different family’s perspective. Another father has brought home a rabbit to turn into stew around Christmas, but he lies to his young son and says it was a wild bunny he brought home to be his pet. As the boy grows attached, we learn that the girl in the first family has passed away in a tragic accident, and this air of death hangs over the otherwise colorful and comedic conversation.
Sitaru stages the whole film in wide shots and colorful foyers. The deadpan framing and comedy may remind many of Wes Anderson, but it draws heavily from the Romanian New Wave. Recent films like “4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days,” “12:08 East of Bucharest” and “The Death of Mr. Lazarescu” employ a deliberate lack of editing or even motion behind the camera. These still frames hit just the right mark of blunt comedy, surreal drama and an emotional center when combined with this genuine screenplay.
“Domestic” is a film that defies description. Imagine if I asked you to recall your Thanksgiving dinner. What was discussed? Likely everyone had their own juicy anecdote or observation. “Domestic,” once the families are established and the household pets are in ripe danger, operates on a vignette level of realism that’s hard to match. One of the best moments is when one father presumes that all the UFO and ghost sightings are actually human, time traveling tourists from the future, revisiting the past for amusement. He goes as far as to presume Jesus was one such of these people, but he didn’t quite get the return ticket home.
Overall the details and the stories feel less important, and the tone and compassion for these families generated is all the more poignant. “Domestic” goes to great places without leaving the comfort of your own dinner table.
3 ½ stars