The world is in chaos as an unexpected event forces everyone into their homes, incapable of seeing anyone else face to face. Everyone must now interact with one another via the internet, and while each of these stories may seem like Distant Tales, they are mysteriously connected.
Distant Tales consists of four unique stories, all dealing with separation and isolation. Director Shem Bitterman does a wonderful job of moving viewers along slowly, little by little giving us more information and allowing us into the lives of those characters on screen. However, the final story, one about an extreme-right individual prepared to take a stand against the government, doesn’t keep with the same tone as the other three stories, and the film ultimately falters at the end. What could have ended beautifully, after diving so deep into the emotional trauma that we all faced just a few short years ago, falls off, and tries to take a political stand. Distant Tales is fifteen minutes too long, and it should have ended with the third story, neatly concluding a thrilling anthology up to that point and giving viewers something to think about for days (even weeks) after its conclusion.
With all of that being said, I’d like to ignore the final installment for the rest of this analysis (really just pretend it doesn’t exist. Just remember that everything that is true of the first three stories, the opposite is true of the forth and final installment)–because every second of Distant Tales up to that point is truly stunning. Whether it’s a job interview, an unfaithful husband, or something else, every second of this film is beautiful. The emotional relevance of all that transpires is brilliant, and Bitterman and his team of writers do a stellar job of ensuring that viewers can access these characters and their stories.
What Bitterman does incredibly well is slowly develop these stories, ensuring that each and every part of the film burns and is ingrained in the minds of those watching. We aren’t often sure of the direction in which Distant Tales is headed, and there is always some sort of misdirection, always some shift in the narrative that shocks viewers. By the end of each episode (for lack of a better term), viewers are enveloped in these stories, fully becoming part of the journey playing out before them. Through emotion, acting, pacing, and more, Distant Tales comes to life with great vigor, and it all works beautifully to create one, interestingly cohesive journey.
Distant Tales tells us a series of stories about isolation, passion, revenge, and more–and everything is brilliantly blended together to create something cohesive and enjoyable. By the film’s conclusion, questions have been answered, character arcs have been concluded, and just about everything we could have hoped for from Distant Tales comes to be.
Directed by Shem Bitterman.
Written by Shem Bitterman, Amen Igbinosun, & Carolyn Michelle Smith.
Starring Tiffany Wolff, Samuel Martin Lewis, Alaska Jackson, Liz Fenning, Rupek Ginn, Shem Bitterman, Carolyn Michelle Smith, Amen Igbinosun, Chental Nchako, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10
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