Small Things Like These(2024)

"If you want to get on in life, there's things you have to ignore so you can keep on. "

Directed by Tim Mielants, Small Things Like These offers a coal merchants story of confronting his past while facing the realities of a small Irish town run and controlled by the Catholic Church in 1980s.

It's okay if you haven't seen the film yet because I will not be giving you spoilers. Given this, let's continue delving into what I liked the most about this Irish drama.

The film reminded me of Hemingway's Iceberg Theory, the way of explaining by not telling too much. The theory is also known as the theory of omission, and this movie aligns beautifully with it.

According to Hemingway, the deeper meaning lies beneath the untold, hidden meanings. The reader is there to interpret and explore the submerged things.

Small Things Like These reflects Iceberg Theory through its minimalist storytelling, sparse dialogue, and silent atmosphere that lacks expositions. The film avoids melodrama and conveys its message through the everyday mundanity.

The greyish atmosphere of this small Irish town reflects the oppressive climate of Ireland back in the day, and the residents of this town are from working class who are trying to make ends while Christmas is coming.

Bill conveys his emotions through silence and subtle gestures. Even after the discovery of the tragic secrets, Bill's character confronts his past without externalizing his feelings too much.

The pacing is slow yet deep; you sit with discomfort and agony while not much happens on the screen.

Through all of these, the story delves into the legacy of institutional abuse in Ireland during the 80s in Magdalene Laundries. The movie relies on the oppressive and traumatic reality of a corrupt system with the protagonist torn between maintaining social conformity and his morality.