Bubble

What has got into one of the most respected and successful film makers in Hollywood (Traffic, Ocean’s Eleven) to make a film that may well best be described (without wanting to being insulting – on the contrary) as an amateur film? Or maybe as an anti-Hollywood film? A film without stars. A film without sensation and glitter. And a social-realistic film to boot, showing a contemporary America rarely seen in American films (with the exception of documentaries). The film was shot on location in Ohio – hardly an economically thriving state. The region gives a concrete face to the phenomenon ‘economic depression’. The three leading roles are played by amateurs, which serves to increase the authenticity of the location. They work in a doll factory, the like of which you would not expect to find outside Asia. The unmistakable message is: that won’t last very long. But alongside the economic realism, Bubble also tells a dramatic murder story. This makes the last part of the film a real whodunit, contrasting starkly with the build-up at the start of the film. However, Bubble does not finally unfold in the classic way. Bubble is a small film with grand ambitions, albeit implicitly. It demonstrates the desire of a great film maker to keep the cinematographic language fresh. (GjZ)

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