Archive for the 'Reviews' Category
Interpreting film noir essentially as a mindless frenzy of shabbily dressed lunatics slicing off each other’s limbs with machetes, The Book of Eli fails to build credibility as the refined genre work it purports itself to be.
Black Lightning (Чёрная Молния) Review
Published March 3rd, 2010 in Europe & Russia and Reviews. 0 Comments
With plenty of action, a story built around a flying vintage car and presentation bordering on magical realism, Black Lightning (Chernaya Molniya) appears to have all the makings of a modern classic, yet neither the superfluous special effects nor the production budget of $8 million manage to save it from falling flat on its face.
Terribly Happy (Frygtelig lykkelig) Review
Published February 28th, 2010 in Europe & Russia and Reviews. 0 Comments
With its uniquely Scandinavian atmosphere of eerie moroseness permeating every shot, Terribly Happy (Frygtelig lykkelig) is the work of a talented auteur, an artistic triumph that sets itself apart from like-minded films by focusing on the quality of the experience it delivers rather than settling for cheap thrills.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Män som hatar kvinnor) Review
Published February 25th, 2010 in Europe & Russia and Reviews. 1 Comment
Although a bit overrated, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo can be an enjoyable way to spend the evening if it is mystery you seek and do not mind the slow pacing and subtitles. However, it is at best a popular cult film – clearly not the new artistic masterpiece some have made it sound to be.
Kathryn Bigelow’s Oscar-nominated The Hurt Locker is perhaps one of the best war films ever made – and quite certainly the definitive cinematic work dealing with the current war in Iraq.
Raw, bold and frenetically charged, Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire’s French drama Johnny Mad Dog is a film about child soldiers fighting a civil war in an unnamed African country one would likely have high hopes for.
With its collapsible giant mushrooms, predatory pterodactyl-types and rhinoceros-like hammer-headed creatures, Avatar is every bit as good as promised and sets a clear example of what sci-fi movies should be like.
Troubled Water (DeUsynlige) Review
Published January 3rd, 2010 in Europe & Russia and Reviews. 0 Comments
Following in the footsteps of Philippe Claudel’s recent French drama about an ex-convict’s readjustment to civil life I’ve Loved You So Long (2008) and Lee Chang-dong’s South Korean take on the tragic aftermath of a kidnapping Secret Sunshine (2007), Troubled Water (DeUsynlige) is a challenging and deeply humanist work that deals with many themes comprising the essential foundations of the modern psyche.
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