Shadows on the Wall | What Remains

What Remains

dir Ran Huang
scr Ran Huang, Megan Everett-Skarsgard
prd Ya Ning, Qinshu Zuo, Ran Huang, Liang Ying, Jessica Chen
with Gustaf Skarsgard, Stellan Skarsgard, Andrea Riseborough, Magnus Krepper, Milka Ahlroth, Anna-Leena Sipila, Darren McStay, Charlie Petersson, Antti Luusuaniemi, Rich Lyons, Eva Magyar, Sophia Heikilla
release US 21.Jun.24,
UK 5.Jul.24
22/Finland 2h07

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Inspired by a true story, this Finnish-Chinese produced English-language drama has a haunting ambience that gets under the skin. Filmmaker Ran Huang creates hushed scenes that feel eerily incomplete, as tantalising details tap into mental states as a larger mystery unfolds. Dialog is spoken in a whisper, as people wrestle with facts that stubbornly refuse to reveal the truth. So the film is gripping but also rather sleepy.

Two months before he's due to leave a mental institution, Mads (Gustaf Skarsgard) expresses regret to his therapist Anna (Riseborough) about molesting and killing young boys three decades ago. She has to alert the authorities and cancel his release, even as she tries to help him make peace with abuse he endured as a child. And now police detective Soren (Stellan Skarsgard) is digging into these unsolved cases, struggling to work out which confessions are real and which are delusional. And Mads doesn't seem to know himself, especially with Soren pushing him so hard.

Anna and Soren have other momentous things going on that are affecting how they approach this situation. For Anna, it's important that Mads is heard and understood as a victim, no matter what he might have done. But for Soren, Mads is merely another criminal who needs to offer more clear confessions. The problem is that Mads' memories feel like dreams. And when it gets down to it, he's not even sure who he really is.

Performances are subdued and internalised, forcing the audience to lean into what isn't spoken aloud. Each performance finds deep textures, with earthy emotions and an intense yearning to find the truth. Riseborough and father-son actors Gustaf and Stellan Skarsgard play people caught in a three-sided trap, each trying to bring their own perspective into focus while the details slip from their grasp. These are darkly shaded characters who are involving simply because their internal feelings are so powerfully portrayed.

Fans of procedural thrillers may find this story deeply frustrating, because the more people speak to each other the further they seem to get from solving these cold cases. But it's a fiercely clever depiction of the real world complexities as opposed to standard clear-cut movie narratives. It's not just about the external facts: Mads speaks of needing truth to interpret his conflicting memories. So the film is a knowing reminder that we should never expect life to be as tidy as it usually is on screen.

themes, language, violence 29.Jun.24

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