Vast

An intense, deeply intimate drama about Isabel, an internally fragile, externally tough teenager who has been sent to a juvenile correctional facility. Although hardly pampered by life previously, her psychological state is now investigated in absolute detail. Isabel’s past, however, remains untold. The only thing that matters is what’s happening here and now, and today Isabel has decided to overcome her outbreaks of aggression. She has opted for change but does she have the physical and psychological strength to succeed? The camera brazenly fixates on Isabel’s body. But also on her face as it reveals her anxiety, her attempts to use convulsive laughter as a means of escape, and her desire to come to terms with the past. In the end it is kickboxing that saves Isabel from her explosive and often uncontrollable stress. Sigrid ten Napel’s intense portrayal dominates the film along with detail-obsessed camerawork, and focused direction from Rolf van Eijk. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)