"Sweet Gifts."

And experimental video for interpretation

By Bill Olson

Revised Sunday, January 05, 2003

© 2003 William David Sherman Olson

http://www.oocities.org/iconostar/film.htm

It is a winter night, with snow and cold.

The Protagonist, a young man, watches as other men walk up to a house guarded by women.

Each man has an empty bowl, which he holds out for inspection.

When the women guards see the empty bowl, they let each man inside.

The protagonist sees inside the house: There is a fire in the fireplace.

Gathered around in the warmth are the men and women.

Two men hold out their bowls before a woman.

She then drops a grape into each bowl.

We hear each grape hit inside the bowl. It is the only sound.

It is rhythmic and very controlled.

The protagonist goes up to the house.

The women guards look at him.

He holds out his empty bowl with a hopeful expression.

They look at him with kind smiles, but do nothing else.

The protagonist walks away, sad.

He sees another woman, standing outside near the house.

She holds out a grape.

He holds out his empty bowl.

She drops a grape into it.

He smiles.

Then she removes his stocking cap.

She drops in another grape.

Then she removes his scarf.

Inside the house, a woman and man look into each other’s eyes.

He holds out his empty bowl.

She holds up a bunch of grapes.

Outside, the protagonist receives a grape from the woman.

She then removes his gloves.

Inside, the couple stands together.

The woman places the bunch of grapes in his bowl.

Outside, the protagonist lies naked in the snow, dying, his bowl of grapes next to him.

Inside, the woman who gave away the bunch of grapes smiles as she caresses male clothes from the first man that are draped over her arm.

Outside, the man who had received the bunch of grapes lies naked in the snow, dying, his bowl with its bunch of grapes next to him. The camera pans to show a dozen men dying in the snow.

Inside, there are only women now. No men can be seen.

The woman with the clothes draped over her arm also has the bowl of grapes, from which she eats as she laughs with the other women.

The end.