The absurdist comedy Two Shots Fired is the feature comeback of Argentina’s Martin Rejtman, whose 1992 “Rapado” heralded the New Argentine Cinema.
Rejtman’s first fiction feature since 2004’s “Magic Gloves,” “Two Gun Shots” begins with its titular event as Mariano, age 16, returns from a club, grabs a sandwich, mows the lawn, discovers a revolver, loads it, puts it to his temple and fires.
The remainder of “Gun Shots” tracks the consequences of Mariano’s action as it ripples play out over his dog Iago, family, friends and even most tangential associates.
“Two Shots Fired” segued from its world premiere at Locarno to Toronto, where this singular, absurdist study of consequence screened in World Contemporary Cinema.
“Two Shots Fired” not only questions dogs loyalty but distances itself from trad fiction in the unpredictability of its consequence, inscrutability of characters, lack of character arcs and ambiguity of events, moving much closer to what is really reality….
I’m interested in the film functioning like a “narration machine,” where situations flow from one another with a perhaps unconventional cause-effect; but where humor works anchors spectators
Fixed camera-shots
The camera can observe, participate, modify. I prefer the first. I’m not interested in underscoring via music, actors’ performance, or camera movement and angles. For me, filming is a way of equaling all the facets of direction.
Substitute families
In almost all my films subvert the idea of the family. In “Two Shots Fired,” there’s a groups and sub-groups which in some way replace traditional families. In Marianos’ family nobody’s really takes charge. As for the socio-economic details, I think they’re pretty precise. Though I obviously didn’t have the slightest intention of creating a social portrait.
Distribution possibilities
For better or for worse, Internet allows greater access to my films, which means they’re seen less in cinema theaters.
