Ghost Tropic (2020) - Bas Devos

Minimalist in approach yet poignant in what it constructs through its observational lens in which inference from the audience is expected, Ghost Tropic is an immersive visual experience, one which masterfully uses space, lighting, and composition to invoke, largely subtextually, the alienation and uncertainty which is intrinsically connected to the diaspora. Featuring a simple narrative - a late-50's aged woman falls asleep on the train after a long shift and has no other choice but to traverse the city via foot in order to get home - Ghost Tropic could be a beguiling experience for some due to it showing little interest in explicitly expounding any message related to the immigrant experience, yet through its expressive yet understated formal and visual constructions the film rapturously exudes a sense of empathy for its central protagonist, one which builds beautifully towards the film's denouement.  Through the film's impressionist aesthetics Ghost Tropic creates an experience in which the urban cityscape is transformed into an isolating tomb of grand material and manufactured design, loneliness, and alienation are enunciated visually, as the film slowly reveals details about its principal characterization through her interactions with the few individuals she comes across over her long journey home. The loneliness and longing of our protagonist are felt without nearly any exposition, as the aesthetic construction draws parallels between her connection with familial spaces and her homeland - spatiality which is familiar, a device of restitution.  Loneliness and solitude represented in an environment that is often associated with dynamism and connection - the big city - Edward Hopper would be proud. ​