When Father Was Away on Business
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
This review is a part of the Palme d’Or Project: a review of every single Palme d’Or winner at Cannes Film Festival. When Father Was Away on Business won the thirtieth Palme d’Or at the 1985 festival.
The film was selected by the following jury.
Jury President: Miloš Forman.
Jury: Claude Imbert, Edwin Zbonek, Francis Veber, Jorge Amado, Mauro Bolognini, Michel Perez, Mo Rothman, Néstor Almendros, Sarah Miles.
Emir Kusturica is the kind of visionary that can make anything exciting, particularly because of his jam packed mise-en-scène that forces you to try to take in a whole series of events at once. He's obsessed with the little details in his extravagantly curious pictures. He would have staying power with Cannes throughout his prime, winning Best Director for The Time of the Gypsies and another Palme d'Or for Underground: both would be arthouse classics that defined his career. His first Palme d'Or win was for When Father Was Away on Business, and there wasn't any way to tell at the time that this was only the beginning when it came to his signature, electrifying style (as if Fassbinder passed along the torch for historical dramas told with such flavour and excitement). Kusturica also possesses such a strange sense of humour, but he manages to somehow make you understand his jokes as well. These moments are melded together with some startling and unusual drama, and together we get sequences of uncertainty; Kusturica's style is quite refreshing if you have felt like you've seen it all.
When Father Was Away on Business was just the tip of the iceberg for his style, but it was enough for Cannes. In this World War II drama, the state of Yugoslavia is in the air, and citizens aren't sure what to do during the severence of the Tito-Stalin partnership. Enemies of the state are being culled during this Cold War dilemma. Additionally, we see a young Malik Malkoč being alerted that his dad is working away from home on a prolonged trip; Malik is none the wiser of what could actually br happening. And we are as well: the fate of the titular father seems up in the air pretty early on. We spend time with Malik and his family otherwise as Kusturica details an empty Yugoslavia: a world with both too much and virtually nothing going on at the same time. It's buzzing but cold. The Malkovich family is garnished with precision, and it feels like we learn too much about them (all of the vulnerable little details), but this is our connection to something substantial in this film. Kusturica loves to take us far into the unknown, but it's through family dynamics and relatability that he makes us feel like we have our bearings as well.
While Emir Kusturica would dare to go further with his films, When Father Was Away on Business still takes you far enough into a different take on historical dramatic filmmaking.
While the film is muddy, there's always something to see. The teensiest of peculiarities that Kusturica would later put on full blast in subsequent films make When Father Was Away on Business feel like an endless eye test. Furthermore, his affinity for making basic plot points become so strange or unorthodox that they always matter can be seen here. I don't want to say too much, because allowing Kusturica to steer you is a major part of his viewing experience, but his absurdity reminds me of someone like Don Hertzfeldt where you know what you're watching doesn't make sense, and yet it feels definitive. Kusturica is brilliant at engaging you and painting these twisted pictures, but the cherry on top is what he has to say about the ways of the world in his own voice. When Father Was Away on Business doesn't go quite as far as his best works do, but it does enough to matter as biting commentary. Here we have a bitter look at the decimation of family life and values within wartime, the neglected essence of Yugoslavia, and a shrug towards the indifference of authoritative figures and the messes they leave behind them. It was enough of a piece for Cannes, but I'm so happy to say that this was only the beginning for Emir Kusturica: one of European cinema's most fascinating minds.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Toronto Metropolitan University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.