Witold has travelled to a small unnamed village in order to rent a room. He needs peace and tranquillity to cram for a Law exam resit that is pending. When he arrives at the original guesthouse, Fuchs a young man with a fashion fixation tells him that the place is a mess and that across the way is a far nicer place to stay. They become friends and stay at the same, new place. Witold however cant seem to get any studying done, for something is unbalanced in the place he is staying.
A place can be reflective of so much of those that occupy it and those who are occupied by it. Take a house that is old and decaying, those that live inside it are often just as this place. They have lost their will to live and decay with the same physical process. Cosmos is in many ways a film that is occupied by the directors vision and by the audiences perception. Both are to be preoccupied with the overt symbolism and eccentric conflict between self and space. One allows for wonderful comments on society, the other reactionary events that are almost to absurd to contemplate.
For me the most striking things are the images of barriers, the new wave nods, the comments of modern experience through the media and Dante. The use of barriers, fences and hostile elements that restrict and captivate are engrossing. Zulawski seems to be concerned about how his and our surrounds capture the person and dull their expressions. The person becomes tactile with the elements but they seem to have not will to alter them or control them. He uses both nature and the household to create these amazing walls to those who want to venture past them. The world is hostile because we have made it to be.
The new wave nods are obvious in places and dull a little. Godard would be pleased with them but even he would acknowledge they are about 20 years past date. The media devices add textures which will delight and compel. I loved his use of the turning over from war to empty, constant fashion shows that are almost the same thing regurgitated at a steady pace. It is so well done that you will need to view it twice to catch these. I know Zulawski adds these into his works. Possession was banned in my opinion in the UK because he added the male fear of reproduction and defilement in clever and frank ways. Hidden here are the comments on war and its lack of importance in society and especially the media.
The very direct reference to Dante made me sing. I love the divine comedy and here it is placed in a position of passing but controlled reference. Wiltold is Dante and maybe Fuchs is Virgil. So summing up. Not Zulawski at his best. It delights with visual manifestations that are bold, clever and at times absurdly stunning. For his final film it will be studied and I will enjoy coming back to it on its release again. Its a film that needs to be engaged with after sometime.
