Examination of electrical diseases

When we meet William, a 40-year-old Swede, he’s covered in cloth. It’s a confusing image, staged without context to inflame the feelings of others when they see William move. At times his appearance resembles the cartoon figure of Casey Affleck in David Lowery’s film. a ghost story (2017); in others it looks more like a jellyfish out of water.

Swedish director Marie Lidén, with whom she made her film debut electrical disease, takes this alienating impression of William and strives to humanize it. However, there is some discomfort in doing so. William tells us that the fabric he covers himself with is designed to protect him from electromagnetic radiation, which he describes as an intense burning sensation throughout his body.

He is not the only person to report such symptoms, which are known to be shared by more than 300,000 people in Sweden alone, including Lidén’s mother. But this “electrosensitivity” is believed to have no scientific basis and is not an official medical diagnosis, forcing those affected to experiment with their own alternative therapy. William says others have taken their own lives as a result, though he remains optimistic and curious about life.

However, Lidén never escapes the impression he creates at the beginning of the film. A dark, haunting cello score and oblique camera angles looking at William through the grimy windows of his cabin in the woods align the documentary with popular horror conventions. This kind of style feels unforgiving and, despite a more brilliant conclusion, leaves an unpleasant aftertaste, only good for other Williams. Nonetheless, she remains at the heart of the film and her reflections on a diminished quality of life have great emotional power.