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The Departed (2006)
Go see the original!
A few years ago I saw the Hong Kong police thriller "Infernal Affairs", of which movie "The Departed" is a remake. I wrote this review of it on the IMDb: "Great movie! In the same league as Michael Mann's "Heat", but it does not "Out-heat" him, as the tag-line on the DVD-box suggests. On the other hand: this movie brings back the exciting and exotic feeling of the first John Woo films. A word of advice to Martin Scorsese, who's named as the director to make an American remake: forget about Matt Damon (one of America's worst and most boring actors) and Leonardo DiCaprio (a fat has-been these days)! It would be an offense to the great original movie to cast actors like them in the main roles. Forget about the box-office, Marty! Just make a good movie! I suggest actors like Edward Norton and Tim Roth for the main roles, and for example Al Pacino as the police captain, or the main hood." Now, having seen "The Departed" I still agree with myself. On the other hand: this movie makes the original even better. (By the way: there are also two sequels: "Infernal Affiars II" and "III", but don't waste your time watching those; they are complete rubbish!) Don't get me wrong: "The Departed" is not a bad movie at all, and I've always respected Martin Scorsese. He's one of the great modern directors, and has made some fantastic movies (I don't think I have to name them for you). But when you're watching a remake, and can't get the original out of your head, there's something wrong. In the first place there's a reason why the aforementioned DVD-box hints on Michael Mann. The original was clearly inspired by his films. So, in my opinion, he was the perfect director to make this American remake. He could have given the film the looks and feel the original has. Scorsese clearly made another choice, and made the film less glamorous, and put it more in the tradition of say "Mean Streets". Also, because Mann is in fact not a mainstream director, I trust he would have kept the feel of the story, with is essential to why "Infernal Affairs" was so attractive. I admit, Scorsese isn't really mainstream either, but he and his scriptwriter made some ridiculous changes to the story, typical for "Hollywood" movies. The most irritating two: in this version the two main opponents (the undercover cop and the undercover hood) share the same love-interest (very unbelievable), and there's something you could call a "happy ending". Why oh why? The original has an ending which leaves much more to our imagination. Then, about the actors! I think Jack Nicholson is a great actor, but as the mafia boss he is to much over the top, as he unfortunately often is now-days (Eric Tsang in the original is less of a caricature, and much more powerful). Leonardo DiCaprio surprised me; he's actually quiet good. Matt Damon is still boring and overrated (by chance I also saw him this weekend in John Dahl's great movie "Rounders"in which he's a college kid, a perfect role for him, and is played of the screen by his friend in the movie, Edward Norton). Martin Sheen as the police captain is OK, but oh sweat dreams, it would have been so beautiful when De Niro played this role. A reversal of what he and Pacino did in "Heat", but I know it's very unlikely they will ever work "together" again. Finally the music: there's really something wrong here! Wake up Marty, this is 2006! But all I hear in the movie is music from the sixties. Don't get me wrong; I'm a big Stones fan, so it's good to hear "Gimme Shelter" and "Let It Loose". But the only music from these days in the film is by the Dropkick Murphys (of whom I'm not really a fan, but that's my problem). Also in this aspect, your average Michael Mann film, and even an episode of "The Sopranos" is much more up to date. In short: I think Scorsese is getting a bit old.
De kroon (2004)
Surprisingly good
These last years there have been a few (television)movies about recent political events in Holland. I didn't really enjoy any of them. It seemed Dutch filmmakers aren't really good at these kind of films, unlike for example English filmmakers. So my expectations for this movie were not very high. But I was pleasantly surprised! I saw a mature political drama. The films tells the story of the near political and constitutional crisis in Holland when the successor to the throne, Willem Alexander, wants to marry the Argentinian girl Maxima Zorreguietta. It turns out that her father was a member of the Argentinian government in the seventies. This was a government of dictators, and there were lot's of political murders in those days, and lots of people disappeared mysteriously. To most Dutch people it would be unthinkable that this man would come to this wedding, together with our queen and our royal family. So eventually he didn't. But the solving of this crisis took a big effort of prime Minister Wim Kok (a social democrat!). He solved the problem trough silent diplomacy, and with the help of Max van der Stoel, former minister of Foreign affairs, and a man with great international standing (also a social democrat). What makes the film interesting is that it does not claim to be an exact representation of the factual events, but merely an interpretation. The three main characters (Bram van der Vlugt as the prime minister, Eric van der Donk as the former minister and a Spanish actor as the father) are very good, and it's a real pleasure to watch their scenes together. It's interesting that they are no lookalikes, but merely older man of about the same age as the real characters. But the actors did study the habits and particularities of the original politicians very well! On the other hand Willem Alexander and Maxima are played by lookalikes, and are in fact not really interesting. After seeing this movie I think that maybe there's hope for good Dutch political drama after all!
Off Screen (2005)
Simply a great movie!
This simply is a great movie! I voted 9 out of 10. It shows that it's possible, even in the Netherlands, to make intelligent movies about actual topics or events. For ages the only themes in serious Dutch films were the Second World War and sex. Luckily this is changing now. For instance last year we saw the comedy "Shouf Shouf Habibi" about the problems of immigrants from Marocco in Holland, and the murdered filmmaker Theo van Gogh made "05/ 06" about the murder of the politician Pim Fortuyn. "Off Screen" is also based on true events. Two years ago a confused man (a bus driver) took hostages in an office building because he wanted to speak to the top executive of Philips Electronics, about the introduction of widescreen television. He thought this was one big scam, and that the consumers were mislead, because in Holland there are hardly any broadcasts in the widescreen format. (In fact he was right of course!) It was a bit of a sad event, because just a few days before the Philips offices were moved to an adjourning office building. It ended with the confused man committing suicide. The film was made on a very small budged, but that's hardly visible. The film focuses on the life of the divorced bus driver. It shows the psychological process and the supposed encounters he had with the Philips executive that led to his actions. I say supposed encounters, because the best thing about the film is that it never becomes exactly clear what's real, and what's not. Did things really happen, or is it all just in the mind of the bus driver? In this aspect the film reminded me of films like "Swimming Pool" (Francois Ozon), "Als Twee Druppels Water" (Fons Rademakers), or even "Big Fish" (Tim Burton), "The Usual Suspects" (Brain Singer) and "Fight Club" (David Fincher). The two main actors are absolutely great! In their separate scenes, but also in their scenes together there is a real chemistry. The Belgian actor Jan Decleir (as the bus driver) is always good. Jeroen Krabbé (as the Philips executive) has made great movies, but also a few awful ones. Here he shows he still is a one of Holland's best actors. Let there be made more intriguing movies like this, and let there be less money wasted on big budget productions (to Dutch standards that is) like the recent turkey "Floris". And let Paul Verhoeven finally make the definitive and absolutely last Dutch movie about WW II, the long awaited "Zwartboek"!
Mou gaan dou (2002)
Heat in Hong Kong
Great movie! In the same league as Michael Mann's "Heat", but it does not "Out-heat" him, as the tagline on the DVD-box suggests. On the other hand: this movie brings back the exciting and exotic feeling of the first John Woo films. A word of advice to Martin Scorsese, who's named as the director to make an American remake: forget about Matt Damon (one of America's worst and most boring actors) and Leonardo DiCaprio (a fat has-been these days)! It would be an offence to the great original movie to cast actors like them in the main roles. Forget about the box-office, Marty! Just make a good movie! I suggest actors like Edward Norton ant Tim Roth for the main roles, and for example Al Pacino as the police captain, or the main hood.
The Funeral (1996)
Walken saves it!
This film is no masterpiece at all! In fact it's a little boring for most of the time. It's something like a low-budget Godfather. But the last 15 minutes are O.K. And Christopher Walken saves the whole movie in one of the last scenes, when he has to decide whether or not kill his brother's murderer.
The Yards (2000)
OK
I just saw this film, and can say I think it's OK. I read all about the way the director made the film his way, without any compromises, and how he got a great cast together, and I respect him for that. But it's hard not to compare this movie to his first one, Little Odessa. It has about the same feel about it. It looks a bit the same (dark and gloomy most of the time). It sounds a bit the same (dark and gloomy most of the time). Some elements of the story are about the same; in both films a young man returns home after having been away for a long time, living a life of crime or spending his time in jail. Both times the mother of the main character (Tim Roth in the first one, Mark Wahlberg in this one) has poor health, and spends a lot of time in bed. Both times a story with a lot of crime unfolds, with eventually leads to a very unhappy ending. I must say I think I prefer Little Odessa; maybe just because it was there first, maybe because it's just a bit more dark and gloomy, and a bit more over the top. Finally: I read a lot of comparisons of this film to Coppola's The Godfather. Of course I can see them too, but once more it's shown here that it's virtually impossible to compete with that epic crime saga.