Stemple Pass

A garden shed stands alone in the vicinity of a group of trees; beyond it extends a forest so dense that it almost veils the peak of the nearby mountain. Four static shots, each taken from the same angle and lasting thirty minutes: spring, autumn, winter and summer. Birdsong, flies buzzing, a hill swathed in mist, rain, snow, and then the dawn. The viewer’s meditative and contemplative experience is periodically interrupted by a monotone voice reading extracts from the diaries of the notorious Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, a terrorist who campaigned against modern technology. This two-hour film places great demands on viewers, yet if they surrender to it and allow themselves to be swept along by the current of associations and contrasts that evolve into feelings of outrage, anger and disgust – but also connection and compassion – they will be rewarded with a pure experience of the integrity of nature and of the unchanging yet always remarkable cycle of life. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)