Home / Arts and Entertainment / Director's 18-Year Hiatus Ends with Haunting Dementia Drama
Director's 18-Year Hiatus Ends with Haunting Dementia Drama
18 Feb
Summary
- Director Lance Hammer returns after 18 years with "Queen at Sea."
- Film explores dementia, focusing on bureaucratic fallout from a police call.
- Utilizes disorienting style to reflect loss of control and shifting perceptions.
Director Lance Hammer makes a notable return after an 18-year hiatus with "Queen at Sea." His debut, "Ballast," premiered at Sundance in 2008. This new film, set to debut at the Berlin Film Festival, presents a shift in style while retaining Hammer's signature patient, observational approach.
The drama centers on a family dealing with Alzheimer's disease. When a daughter reports her mother's non-consensual sexual activity with her caregiver stepfather, it triggers a complex police investigation and social worker involvement.
This incident forces the daughter and her teenage child to move in and assume caregiving duties. The film's artistic merit lies in its disorienting style, employing still cameras and asymmetric compositions to visually represent the futility of control amidst life's uncertainties.
"Queen at Sea" is described as an unflinching and upsetting yet deeply humanistic portrayal of aging and dementia. It stands out by focusing on clear character studies, even amidst suffering, with veteran actors like Anna Calder-Marshall and Tom Courtenay conveying profound emotion through subtle physicality.
