Milas Tagebuch (Milas Diary)
Directed by Gabriel Da Silva | Reviewed by Samiksha Periwal
“Milas Diary” is a short film with a simple yet strong message against bullying, which is a highly relevant and sensitive topic in today’s society. This film deals with the narrative of Milas Tagebuch, a little schoolgirl who is bold and fights up for herself and her friends when someone tries to harm them. She keeps a personal diary in which she expresses her feelings and opinions about everything that happens in her life. A situation comes up in her school where she is detained for getting into a fight with her classmates and she has to handover her personal diary to her teacher for justifying her behavior. It’s fascinating to observe how this diary sets off a chain reaction for her teacher, resulting in a new link in the story.
This film depicts how bullying and discrimination are practiced even today by young children in their schools. In this narrative, Mila elaborately describes how her friend Elodie, who is a brown girl, not very fluent with the German language, gets tormented by her classmates because of her cultural differences. It portrays how there is a need for schools to imbibe the concept of variety and respect of diverse cultures in the minds of such young children, who tend to negatively impact the lives of their peers due to their immature behavior. The teacher, Miss Eva Meyer also appreciates Mila’s honesty and respects her fearless attitude. However, once she gets hold of her personal diary, she is reminded of her past and feels disturbed for a few moments. It is interesting to see how the story unfolds from here and emphasizes on the central theme through different perspectives.
Alba, a young and exceptionally brilliant actor, plays Milas Tagebuch, the protagonist. She has a thorough understanding of her character and has performed admirably in this job. Her character is expressive, bold and direct which is why it connects with the audience and keeps them hooked on to the story throughout. Eva Meyer, her teacher, was portrayed by Noelia Finocchiaro. Her acting is commendable, and her character is likeable in the eyes of the audience. Miss Meyer is a wise and mature woman who is a gifted teacher. She is someone who understands how to interact with children in a mature and compassionate manner. There is an unsaid understanding between these two characters which make the story more naturalistic and help in creating a connection with the audience. The trust and comfort in their relationship is visible by the way they interact with one another and because of the fact that Mila doesn’t hesitate to give her personal diary, which is supposed to be extremely private, to her teacher. This student-teacher bond is one of the major highlights of the film which is definitely something that the viewers would enjoy watching.
The entire film is set in a classroom which looks lively and colorful which is visually pleasing for the eyes of the viewers. It has been shot extremely well in terms of considering perspectives while taking shots from different camera angles. Gabriel De Silva has done a commendable job in directing this wonderful script and putting across a very important message efficiently.
His method of dealing with the touchy subject of bullying is both original and relevant. It aids in raising awareness on this issue which is much required in a modern and fast-paced era where people tend to neglect such sensitive topics.
The director of this film is a filmmaker and an actor. He started his journey as a filmmaker from 2015, after completing his educational training in acting and has successfully made six short films and one feature film till date, “Milas Diary” is one of them.
In a nut shell, this film is a simple, to-the point story that is backed up by an exceptionally skilled cast and crew, making it a must-watch for everyone.
