Saw the movie at Chicago film festival. Disclaimer--I am not at all familiar with the director's work. However, I am very familiar with the feeling I had when back in the USSR they made movies trying to depict life in America. Well, this time the Swedes (with the assistance from the Danes) make the movie about life... in America, Philippines and Thailand. I swear, sometimes these kinds of things should really be left to the locals.
As a moviegoer I want to be entertained, whether it's a tragedy, a melodrama, or an action flick. On this simplistic level the movie definitely fails. It could be OK, there are plenty of long European movies which are more of the statement of the vision or the philosophy of the artist (The Class/Entre Les Murs is an example of a movie that would be fun to watch only for teachers and nobody else--but at least you appreciate what the film is trying to do)...
However, Mammoth failed for me on an almost visceral level. I very strongly disliked the moralizing approach taken by the director. If you enjoy being told how wrongly you live your life, this is for you (when mother stabs her son in the stomach, is is bad?.. and should we draw a few analogies to this kind of thing?). The rest of the audience should be better off seeing a nice romantic comedy.
As a moviegoer I want to be entertained, whether it's a tragedy, a melodrama, or an action flick. On this simplistic level the movie definitely fails. It could be OK, there are plenty of long European movies which are more of the statement of the vision or the philosophy of the artist (The Class/Entre Les Murs is an example of a movie that would be fun to watch only for teachers and nobody else--but at least you appreciate what the film is trying to do)...
However, Mammoth failed for me on an almost visceral level. I very strongly disliked the moralizing approach taken by the director. If you enjoy being told how wrongly you live your life, this is for you (when mother stabs her son in the stomach, is is bad?.. and should we draw a few analogies to this kind of thing?). The rest of the audience should be better off seeing a nice romantic comedy.