Arabesque

Written & Directed by Nick Archer

2023

Coalescent Films

Exploring the creative process itself, Arabesque is a new Midlands drama-thriller from filmmaker Nick Archer where artistic endeavours across photography, dance and writing all intertwine.

Somewhat experimental in style, the film’s atmosphere is one of swirling confusion as we are introduced to a range of artists all struggling with their own personal demons.

First, we find a dressing-gowned author (Liam M. Edwards) struggling with alcohol and writer’s block who could be ditched by his publishers if he doesn’t deliver a book on time. We also get an insight into the world of a photographer (Daemian Greaves) whose portraits of muscular fighters may need to be replaced by balletic dancers owing to current trends.

The dancer in question is played by Becki Lloyd whose artistic endeavours are somewhat against odds with the “fame-game” and industry exploitation she is starting to face.

Although the story initially has moments of disarray, what the audience soon discover that each creative force impacts on the next – for good or bad. Sometimes they inspire blossoming creativity whilst in fact, they all stem from a kind of voyeurism – symbolically and sometimes literally.

The relationships between the arts seem only transactional, where selfishness trumps collaboration and support. And as the characters need things from each other, they also pay a personal price for the piece of themselves they ‘give away’. Or have taken from them.

It’s a very sensory experience throughout. The tapping of keys on a typewriter, the click and flash of a photographer’s camera and the swirling movements of a dancer create a kaleidoscope of visual and aural stimuli. And an eerie score from Tom Rackham builds elements of dread and tension with its ethereal soundscape.

This is supported by Will J. Carman’s crisp cinematography which mixes chaotic strobe lighting sequences with formally composed close-ups exploring every crevice of the artistic spaces these people inhabit.

The difficulty of creative projects is not only a theme of the film but an experience Arabesque went through itself. Started in 2019, the film’s production ceased owing to personal circumstances and Covid before it got back on course. Given the situation, the pressures experienced by the production show how art and life blend together like the topics in the narrative itself.

The Arabesque is a ballet posture but the word can also be applied to designs consisting of intertwined flowing lines and it alludes to that in its structure, content and visuals. And for me, the choreography and floating camerawork also had elements of Luca Guadagnino’s 2018 Suspiria remake with highly poetic movements.

As the female dancer is “encouraged” to move into uncomfortable and abusive territory, the manipulation and sexual harassment within the industry are laid bare without compromise.

And we see thick make-up covering the cracks in artists’ lives and its symphony of dark themes makes Arabesque a thoughtful piece on the risks and threats of art.

With an emotional, engaging and passionate performance from lead Becki Lloyd, it ends as a very successful journey through the eternal battle between art versus commerce. And it expertly shows the sad ‘sexploitation’ of the body too - where true art becomes a horrible casualty in the creative industry.

★★★★★

5/5

Michael Sales