I was very surprised at this movie. The IMDb precis led me to think it was going to be an average action thriller so I watched it to fill in a dull couple of hours, but what a treat it turned out to be.
Definitely not for the Hollywood action fan, this movie is an incredibly well-paced (read: slow burn) psychological study and suspense builder. I found a lot of it reminiscent of a great Hitchcock, who was, after all, the master of building true suspense out of the ominously suggested but mainly unseen.
Matthias Schoenaerts is absolutely brilliant. His portrayal of a damaged, sometimes paranoid, drug-dependent, PTSD-suffering soldier trying to carry out a fill-in assignment on a private security detail is a masterpiece of characterisation. The directing is superb and had me watching in delight throughout the film's entirety. The whole recipe is topped off by cinematography that is so ideally matched to the mood(s) of the film, perfectly complimenting the atmospheric, slow-building story. No, we don't get to know the whole of Vincent's character during this movie, but when have you ever got to know someone well after spending a mere two hours with them? We learn what we need to to engage in the movie and that is just the right amount.
Some reviewers will bemoan the lack of a full background story, dearth of explosions and other typically Hollywood special effects, the dark settings and minimal dialogue. In my opinion that only illustrates that they entirely miss the point and magic of this beautifully made film and I suggest they go and rent a brash, loud, brain-dead, exaggerated Hollywood action explosion-fest.
Definitely not for the Hollywood action fan, this movie is an incredibly well-paced (read: slow burn) psychological study and suspense builder. I found a lot of it reminiscent of a great Hitchcock, who was, after all, the master of building true suspense out of the ominously suggested but mainly unseen.
Matthias Schoenaerts is absolutely brilliant. His portrayal of a damaged, sometimes paranoid, drug-dependent, PTSD-suffering soldier trying to carry out a fill-in assignment on a private security detail is a masterpiece of characterisation. The directing is superb and had me watching in delight throughout the film's entirety. The whole recipe is topped off by cinematography that is so ideally matched to the mood(s) of the film, perfectly complimenting the atmospheric, slow-building story. No, we don't get to know the whole of Vincent's character during this movie, but when have you ever got to know someone well after spending a mere two hours with them? We learn what we need to to engage in the movie and that is just the right amount.
Some reviewers will bemoan the lack of a full background story, dearth of explosions and other typically Hollywood special effects, the dark settings and minimal dialogue. In my opinion that only illustrates that they entirely miss the point and magic of this beautifully made film and I suggest they go and rent a brash, loud, brain-dead, exaggerated Hollywood action explosion-fest.