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Reviews
Young Adult (2011)
Only for adults....
Excellent film. I was really blown away. But I believe that you need to be around 25 to 40 years old to really get what is in this film. When I was 18 or 20 years old, I found people like Theron's character quite pathetic. I thought they were arrogant and maybe just mean. I am 27 now and things pretty much changed in my life. I have been through some not so nice things, also just recently, soon to finish education and maybe start a brilliant career as an attorney. But I am not so sure if that is really what I want to do with my life. If you know what I mean, you might enjoy Young Adult. Excellent performances, great camera and flawless rhythm. Nothing is too short or too long. Really excellent craftsmanship on this one again.
Neverwas (2005)
Stellar cast and a beautiful tale
To be honest, I did not know anything about the film before I watched it. Because of the title and the DVD's cover I figured it would be a nice little "Princess Bride" meets "Stardust" feature. Well, I liked both and I really fancy the spirit of Sir Ian Mckellen. So I watched it. Since then I do not understand why critics and reviewers pan this film. I thought it had an incredible cast. Aaron Eckhart made me believe that he actually was this son who was looking for closure. Sir Ian McKellen was brilliant as a maybe traumatized and over-institutionalized old man who is very clever and creative, but somehow broken deep within. The very sexy Jessica Lange is an asset for every production - and again she pulled it off. She actually kind of reminded me of my own mother and her way to talk to me. For sure she creates a very distinct atmosphere and it seemed quite authentic how her character still mourned. William Hurt does not know how to disappoint, so he does not and gives a very subtle quiet performance which suits his role perfectly. Well, some people may find that Brittany Murphy is a bit over the top - I am SO partial and just thought that she was gorgeous. More importantly the story of the film was very intriguing to me. It almost seemed like a suspenseful thriller - I did not move, all my attention was drawn to the screen. Furthermore I thought that the idea was great that the therapist has his own issues and comes to that hospital to work on those very issues. And he cannot escape it. I liked the idea of the book - I always liked those kind of children's tales and there are so many of them and they are all beautiful! But in the end this film only works so well because of the great actors - not to forget Mr. Nolte - who create very vivid characters one can relate to. And as the story unfolds I felt for all those people because they did not seem like some fabrication but like people I know with their very same problems. If you cannot find anything about this film what you might like - just think about that: Beneath every great and honest piece of art you may find a little pain, a strong agony, a disturbing and unsolvable traumatic event hidden deep deep down. And that might be why this person does these great and beautiful things - if you like to get to know someone, you might take a look what is really going on....
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Purified film making
When I watched this film for the first time at a reissue screening of the Redux cut, I was utterly devastated because of the never ending destruction within this picture. Everyone seemed to be dead inside, lost in fear and regret, gone crazy because of the experience of unspeakable things. I pitied them so much and learned to dislike war for what it is - it only causes devastation in any respect. Later I watched it again and again and still this film puts some kind of a spell on me. It took me some time to figure it all out. Well, there is this outstanding cinematography which I could never enjoy again in this quality. Combined with the editing all the pictures are more like music, very sensual and very attached to the characters' feelings and notions. Somehow a lot of the story is told by the images whereas the music is more subtle and only underlining what the images try to tell you. When it comes to storytelling, this film is very classical in a sense that we just follow Cpt. Willard's descriptions and we can only learn what he knows. So after a while we become his mate and begin to judge the things from his perspective. Well, he does some questionable things and we still do not know if he is really reliable, so we keep distance all the way. Finally, we are attracted and repelled by his weary appearance all the way, so here comes the suspense from. Really nice technique to keep the audience focused on the plot. Furthermore, the cast is incredibly talented - actually they do not even act in this film. They become as real and authentic as anybody. Due to their performances I felt like I was on this very boat, I was scared with them and I was happy for the mail to arrive. Maybe this is the great and outstanding nature of the film: That it feels so real. There is not so much deception in it - as a matter of fact everybody was in the jungle, everybody was fighting a little war there and everybody seemed to despair of their deepest horrors. I reckon that is what the film is all about: What we are looking for lies within and we cannot cover up what we are with shams and lies. To my mind this is film making in a very purified manner.