Arc

The brilliantly portrayed oppressive atmosphere of the redneck countryside features many interesting characters indulging in hypocrisy and xenophobia. It is this rather cracking combination that gives fodder to the tragicomic story of a young man trying to find his lost identity. This happens after a serious work injury caused him to undergo a face transplant. Among the film's strongest moments, in my opinion, are the scenes in which the mother confronts her disfigured son, either directly or through the exorcist. The rawness of the film is strongly underlined by the soundtrack, which is dominated by the driving songs of Metallica. (80%) (2022.01.18)

The soundtrack to the film was great. Otherwise, the film was slightly different from what I was expecting. I was hoping for some good laughs, but the Poles took things more seriously, and I got to enjoy the negative side of human thinking instead. I wasn't too keen on the blurred edges. Considering the quality of my eyesight, I couldn't be sure if it was artistic intent, or my cataract was getting worse, which was a bit annoying. Anyway, I could relate to the theme of the film in a way, and I quite enjoyed it. (2019.03.05)

It seems that the message is that we are all somewhat whores and jerks and we’ve got problems in the South Polish countryside, where a panopticon of hypocritical, xenophobic and frightened creatures are staggering under the largest statue of Christ in the world, where the metal rags of rebel Jack are sticking out. Malgorzata Szumowská has created an original and poisonous mixture of a romantic fable about inner beauty and a realistic testimony about the state of contemporary Eastern European society, which is terrified of everything new and invokes the non-existent tradition so persistently that it has completely lost face. This is a film that Czech cinema lacks. Imperfect, but relevant and wild. Out of focus exactly like the identity of its characters. (2018.09.12)

I have to admit that I’d been looking forward to this movie. Polish cinematography rules Europe and from this story I could feel the cynical and dark humor which is somehow kind as well and which is absurd but at the same time draws on life. That’s something that I know quite well from old Czech comedies, but I no longer see that in movies these days. And that’s exactly the atmosphere that I could feel from this film. It’s a pity that the whole absurd feeling was handled more seriously rather than with humor. There is humor, but it’s so dry that the viewer cannot see it immediately. Mug is definitely a very interesting film and it’s worth watching for sure. (2018.12.04)

In the context of Poland and the local tendencies to rewrite history and the effort to codify a singular correct view of the putative Polish idyll, Mug is certainly an ambitious, courageous and necessary project. On the other hand, let’s admit that, apart from stylistic finesse, it does not exactly bring forth anything innovatively iconoclastic or subversive. Despite a number of stimulating elements, Mug does not contain anything that would cut to the core of society; rather, it is a more sombre Sun, Hay and Strawberries interspersed with metal. Could it be that its enthusiastic reception by critics is due to the fact that, in today’s festival mainstream, people are rather accustomed to seeing emancipatory stories in which the protagonists flourish despite their surroundings, instead of films that depict ordinary people as hicks and bumpkins? (2018.10.04)