Direction: Ori Segev, Noah Dixon
Country: USA
Inspired by their own passion for the underground music scene, first time helmers Ori Segev and Noah Dixon created a powerful indie drama with Poser, whose backdrop was captured in Columbus, Ohio, where they’re based in.
Employing perfectly composed frames and a magnetic cinematography, this lucid, sometimes melancholy portrait of a young woman fascinated by sounds and non-conforming musicians goes much beyond art and pose. The newcomer actor, Sylvie Mix, totally fits in with the atmosphere; she is Lennon Gates, an apparently shy yet ambitious dishwasher and podcaster who develops a dangerous obsession with Bobbi Kitten (herself), the frontwoman of the electro-pop duo Damn The Witch Siren. Lennon secretly aspires to a singer/songwriter career and wants to be accepted by the artists she veneers. But her ambition goes too far in a final push out of her comfort zone. While going to lo-fi sounds, she claims honesty in music, but is she really honest with herself and the others?
The pleasures of the film partly come from the alternative music, the underground setting, and the way the other side of an apparent gentle human is been gradually unveiled. Good feelings actually flow a little too freely in the first part, but we’re sort of surprised at how things are not what they seem. It’s a complex exploration of identity, and we let ourselves be carried away by the commitment of an ensemble that only needs a little extra soul to make us vibrate completely. Even when the characters get lost in pulsating tunes, the filmmaking always brings them down to earth.
Poser finds fresh ground to explore, bolstered by its artistic expression with both chilling and heartbreaking cadenzas. The directors spin this provocative low-key story with smart observations on obsession and character, finding the appropriate form while distilling nerve, charm, and some eccentricity in the mix. There’s art within a film that also seeks to be a form of stylish art itself. And it succeeds, categorically.
