Do you ever wonder what happens to specific characters after a movie or show has ended? Generally it’s something I don’t do often, but this movie made the opposite thing happen. The main chracter here, Nikita (Anne Parillaud), caused me to think: “So that’s what happened to Pippi Longstocking after she grew up!” Continue reading
Category Archives: Violence
ARQ (2016) – Review
Timecrimes, Groundhog Day, Triangle, the tv show Day Break, +1 and Edge of Tomorrow, they are just a few examples of movies in which the main character gets stuck in a time loop. A piece of time in which the same events keep taking place and where the main character uses his knowledge of them to outwit everyone and hopefully escape. It’s “High concept” which is fun to watch. Netflix has stepped into this genre with ARQ, a relatively low budget film (according to director Tony Elliott shy of two million dollar). Is this a must-see for Netflix subscribers? Continue reading
Girlhood (2014) – Review
Based purely on the title you could assume that this is the sequel to Richard Linklater’s Boyhood, a movie which personally didn’t move me as much as it seems to have done to other reviewers. Besides the title though, this movie doesn’t have many similarities. Girlhood is set in France and follows sixteen-year-old Marieme (Karidja Touré). Continue reading
Bastille Day (2016) – Review
What’s the reason we watch movies? Is it to be entertained? To experience art? Or simply to kill time? The answer will differ from person to person, but movies do offer us the ability to experience something someone else is going through. While watching you might recognise something of yourself in a chracter or how you react to events which you normally don’t encounter. Movies also can be a reflection of what is going on in society. It can look at a specific issue (like the use of drones in films like Eye in the Sky and Good Kill) and make the ethical side understandable. It can make us face our biggest fears. Horror movies might be the first thing you’ll think of, but this is also the case with dramatic films. Bastille Day is about terrorism in Paris. After the various attacks all over Europe it’s a sensitive subject, which is why I started to watch this movie with mixed feelings. Continue reading
The Shallows (2016) – Review
If you’d ask me to name some movies which star sharks I wouldn’t be able to name many titles. Of course there is the biggest classic in the genre: Jaws. I can still remember Open Water, in which two divers are left alone in the middle of the ocean and of course Sharknado (which I’d rather forget). From this list it is easy to conclude that there aren’t that many memorable movies with sharks in them. The Shallows tries though by comparing itself to Jaws, but should it? Continue reading
Victoria (2015) – Review
As movies evolved, the way in which stories were told changed as well. That happened in various ways, like the positioning of the camera, the introduction of sound and color and the use of special effects. Movies were edited to suggest suspense or speed and during the eighties, influenced by the music videos on MTV those cuts kept getting faster. Long shots slowly got the image of being slow and boring.
Luckily that has changed during the last couple of years and more movies use long scenes made in one-take. Just think of movies like Children of Men of the opening shot of Spectre. But directors want to push that concept further. Of course Birdman is a well-known example, which manages to suggest it is all made in one shot (even though it is done through smart editing and hiding the cuts). Russian Ark from 2002 was the first movie which, thanks to developments on equipment which could film longer, could be made with one shot (and 2000 extras who all showed pieces of Russian history). That was a more artful movie, but Victoria is a “proper” film. It has one story and has been shot in one take in the streets of Berlin. The end result? A one take 138-minute movie. Continue reading
400 Days (2015) – Review
After the fantastic The Martian I was looking for another science fiction/space related movie and 400 Days sounded like an interesting one. Because if we ever want to travel long distances in space it is important that a group of people is able to handle it psychologically. That’s what 400 Days is about. Continue reading
Blood Father (2016) – Review
Although there has been quite a lot of controversy surrounding Mel Gibson, it is something which I never really cared much about. When it comes to directors or actors I’m usually only interested in what they manage to put on the big screen. The past few years Gibson hasn’t acted in a lot of movies (Edge of Darkness, The Beaver, Get the Gringo, Machete Kills en Expendables 3) and he has not managed to give a memorable performance (The Beaver probably was the most interesting one). Is Blood Father the comeback he has been waiting for? Continue reading
Sausage Party (2016) – Review
How many clueless parents have taken their children to Sausage Party? I hope the cinemas who showed this film have made sure they informed them in advance as this movie could traumatise quite a few of them. This might be an animated movie, but it is to be seen by adults only. One with rude language, sex and many “shocking” moments. Continue reading
The Assassin (2015) – Review
In all aspects of life compatibility is very important. In you personal relationships you search for people who complement you and with whom you can get along, when it comes to technology you want your laptop or phone to work with accessories you get for it. But it’s also something which is present when it comes to movies. It’s the reason why one person is praising Batman v Superman or Suicide Squad and someone else absolutely hates it. For me I had compatibility issues with this film, which generally was praised in review and which won Hou Hsiao-hsien the price for best director at the 68th Cannes film festival. After struggling through this movie though it’s really hard for me to understand why. Continue reading