popdrome Reviews

Big City (2007)

French kids play Cowboys and Indians, and they mean it!

[8/10 · 28 August 2009]

This is an odd one. All throughout France, Europe and the world this little film has been misunderstood. Kids play like adults in America's 19th century wild west, and they play it with a twist. There's romance, war, racism, corruption, torture and death, which, although mildly depicted in (in most cases) a humorous way, is not quite standard family flick material. Not even in France.

But there are more layers. You know, this is also a satire on how idiotic grown-ups are, a satire of Hollywood westerns, and it's even a musical! The director and producers took great risks, and from this point of view, this is certainly interesting cinema. The children play their roles quite sincerely, there's little cheesiness, and the humor is subtle enough for adults to be appreciated. It has been shot in Bulgaria (!?). Go see it if you get the chance, you're in for a surprise.

Anne Frank: The Whole Story (2001)

Not just yet another Anne Frank

[9/10 · 3 May 2009]

Living around the corner of the Dutch Verzetsmuseum (Museum of the Resistance), a (now quite posh) neighborhood where Anne Frank was born and raised for 13 years, I've always had a special interest in the Anne Frank books, films, theater plays and literature.

Many of you might not know that the Amsterdam Anne Frank Stichting has to approve (not license - it's a not-for-profit foundation against discrimination in general), on behalf of the Frank family, before any film or title about Anne can be commercially produced.

Nevertheless, I've seen many grotesque movie adaptations - many of which portray Anne a bigger heroine than she actually was, often played by an actress twice her age (!!), i've been disappointed oftentimes.

On a side note, I would have been happy to pay big money to've seen Natalie Portman in the theater adaptation she was supposedly in a few years ago.

This now, "Anne Frank The Whole Story", is something else. It's a very beautiful film, first of all, despite shot in Prague, depicting Amsterdam in a true way, about Anne Frank - not so much relying on her diary - but her life and times beyond the "Achterhuis".

I actually believed Hannah Taylor-Gordon, who is a joy to watch anyway, portraying the Anne Frank as I imagined her; happy and merry, steadfast, precocious and foremost just a plain dutch girl.

Needless to say, Ben Kingsley is great, and so are the many other talents. But this actress, she stole the show for me, and because Anne's story appeals to so many people worldwide, this should be a cornerstone in her acting career.

As this was largely a Czech/American production, I think it's time the Dutch start making a true-to-life version. After the Germans with the brilliant "Der Untergang" about Hitler in his bunker, I think the Dutch should have a go at this for dutch history so important lesson. If there's not enough money possibly a co-production. Because it's still rather ridiculous to hear all the characters speak with British and east-European accents.

Plus as far as I can tell, the Netherlands have plenty of acting talent.

Meanwhile, this one's a keeper until then. Highly recommended.

Inkheart (2008)

Makes no sense..

[4/10 · 18 April 2009]

Cornelia Funke, German novelist and children's book writer, supposedly had Brendan Fraser in mind when she wrote this story. OK. Is Brendan Fraser a big star in Germany? I can imagine having John Malkovich or Al Pacino in mind when writing a book - but Fraser? Hmm..

Funke, who wrote The Thief Lord and Die Wilden Huhner, based this story on a simple idea: characters come to life from books when read by a specific someone. After about an hour into the film I totally lost the plot. Such a simple idea, and being unable to tell a good story around it makes it remarkably pale and thin. I didn't understand and didn't care for all the characters that were 'read' out of the book, some were happy, others wanted to go back into the book. First there was only one person who could bring characters to life, then all of a sudden there were three.

Then there was the writer of the book (who didn't have one copy of it) - then there was an evil creature. And what was the old woman's purpose on the motorbike? Eliza Bennet, who is cute, doesn't fit the role of a beautiful princess (as a tomboy like she played in the Contractor she shined) seems to be equipped with only one (1!) facial expression. A cry face. Even when she smiled she couldn't hide it.

Javier Navarrete, usually a very solid composer, created one of the most bland and unidentifiable scores of his career. Knitted together some little tatters to a gray mass of boring sostenuto.

Nope. Overall, this is not a great movie and could have been so much better. You may avoid.

That Special Summer (2007)

Nanna Huolman's first feature is a terribly overlooked and underrated masterpiece!

[9/10 · 6 November 2008]

This endearing and disarmingly beautiful little gem - a particularly authentic coming-of-age masterpiece set in the 80's Scandinavia - has just too many merits to be overlooked.

Headstrong Kirsi, a Swedish girl of Finnish minority, has won a reporter contest for Radio Gothenburg. When her widowed and estranged mother decides to spend the summer in her homeland Finland, Kirsi (who has chosen to be known as Kid Svensk) decides to take a tape recorder and make a reportage about her stay in Finland.

Soon it becomes clear that this is a summer that changes Kid's life. First love, very subtly narrated, and the homesickness and newfound love of mum (leading her to consider never to go back to Sweden again) - inevitably renders to a collision and eventually, deeper relationship between mother and daughter.

The picture is so terrificly shot. And what the Nordic countries are famous for in cinema: capturing the angst and perception of children, without ever looking down or becoming childish, so very well done - in fact these are serious matters.

What completely baffled me was the acting of young Mia Saarinen. She was able to totally carry this complex role of a young girl with the world on her shoulders. She's got a killer smile. The innocent-but-intelligent way she plays with a boy's feelings. The precociousness and totally unnaive curiosity to understand the world around her. Very well done for an eleven year-old girl.

To sum it up - we have here a beautiful film, excellently acted and narrated. Big compliments for the director, and evidently looking promising for future projects!

Mercredi, folle journée! (2001)

Good example of outstanding French comedy

[8/10 · 19 October 2008]

On the surface, this may seem a simple, typical French frolic, with too many characters, too many intertwined story lines - a little too much of everything stuffed into a two hour (!) piece of carefree entertainment.

OTOH, from a less superficial point of view though, this can be seen as outstanding ensemble work, well scripted, - acted and edited about the absurdity of everyday life. A school class in Nantes, France, has the day off to play and the kids get to spend time with their parents. The parents of the schoolchildren lead a hectic life full of stress and relationship blues, hardly knowing what to dowith their children when they're off school.

The beauty of this film is, that it tells a story, without ever becoming boring, about how trivial our everyday lives are. If you understand French well enough, you'll find a lot of subtle and painful jokes, without ever turning into cynicism.

How much better are we than our children? Or haven't we ever grown up? These seem the relevant questions here.

The acting (as usual ensemble piece: an all star cast) is very good and contains finesse. Special regard must go to the many children that not only inhabit, but beautifully embody the story. The director did an excellent job by letting the girls and boys, without acting experience, look natural and sane in the midst of the frenzies the grown ups produce. Well done job there.

All in all, Mercredi folle journee is an achievement. Maybe not a masterpiece, but at least a good example of French comedy, and a Saturday afternoon well spent.

Worlds Apart (2008)

Merciful drama of the modern day dilemma

[9/10 · 28 September 2008]

Last time I reviewed a danish production, I got spit out and bit in the tail for stepping on danish toes. Drømmen was supposedly Arden Oplev's masterpiece but however I tried, I didn't get it. Not one bit of it.

This time (and fate is sweet and relentless), unknowingly, I thoroughly enjoyed a danish masterpiece: To Verdener, same director and writer! And honestly, I watched it twice and I can't find any flaws in it. It's brilliant. The acting is so sincere, the story so well told, the movie's pace forces you to keep watching, music is original, and the plot very well unfolded.

A girl, raised as a Jehova's Witness, is forced into a devils dilemma when she falls for a charming older boy - a "non-witness", so there's bound to be trouble. This theme, very accurately portrayed and far from original, is very actual nowadays when so many people abandon their Christian roots, tempted by modern days' lusts and attractions, shopping, the net, sexuality, individuality and 'follow your dream' zeitgeist.

Not only makes Rosalinde Mynster this story believable, she acts it out so well, there must have been bucket loads of chemistry on the set. From the Elder John to the young sister Elisabeth (another danish acting wonder Sarah Juel Werner) - all characters are real, fully developed and utterly believable. The biggest surprise for me though, frankly, was Pilou Asbæk, in his role as Teis, Sara's new found love. What a charm, what charisma, and what talent. His character goes through lengths as much as even volunteering to join the Witnesses, thus reaching out for Sara and share her burden.

Sara, in the end, makes a far from diminutive choice, a choice for a worldly life - eventually even breaking all attachments; her family, her boyfriend and ultimately, Jehova.

The end dialog with her father is so pivotal and to the point, it should end up in cinema history books. Won't spoil it all for you - but it's pure excellence.

The best thing this movie achieves, is it never judges. There's no "good" or "bad" when it comes to religion. The Jehova's are portrayed unbiased, not overly sympathized, not threatening. Every decision Sara and her family have to make is difficult, complex. Yet it's far from depressing. In fact all in all this ends up to be a very positive movie.

Life has changed, life goes on. We all choose what we think is good for us.

Well to sum it up. Grand movie, very well acted, and gives food for thought big time. Give it 9 out of 10.

Crusade in Jeans (2006)

Not even a Nice try..

[1/10 · 14 July 2007]

Has this movie been directed? Short answer: no.

Obviously the director tried, but failed miserably. This is a movie made by consensus and the result is the product of lack of leadership.

Worse. The result is an absurd piece of non-art. This movie is so full of mistakes that it's almost (I said almost) a joy to watch. It lacks coherence, probability, it lacks a proper cast, decent movie score, there's horrible editing, plot holes, visual mistakes and everything (I mean everything) seems out of place.

One of the most blatant mistakes is the casting. The main actor has the charisma of a shoe. He's supposed to portray a 15 year old but looks ten years older and there's no character development.

The story is about a crusade of 8000 children. One question: where are they? All I see is a handful of extra's. I assure you: that's pure ridicule.

In one scene there's ships on the sea, the next they're gone. The fighting scenes have the absurdity of monty python. There's daylight scenes with night scenes edit inbetween. I could go on and on.

A fifteen year old knows how to make dynamite? Out of bird poop? 13th century children sing Queen's "We Are The Champions"? A mobile phone battery lasting weeks? Three months worth of medicine in a tube the size of a pencil? One boy baking 10,000 breads? In one night? Is there any logic?

And I haven't mentioned the biggest problem yet: the marketing. First of all what market? Dutch? German? English speaking European countries? Secondly, who was this intended for? Children (don't think so because of the 9yo age limit). Teens? Doubt it, my grandma tells cooler stories. Bored housewives and -fathers? It's so obvious the producers had no clue what they were making, so they probably aimed it at all of the above.

Poor souls.

I'm sure they tried. They had meetings. Lots of meetings. They must have discussed everything, leaving the artists empty handed, or worse, "managed".

Tell you what, they didn't manage.

They failed. Totally.

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Blue Screen Bankrupcy

[3/10 · 6 July 2007]

Hmm. Suppose you wanted to make a blockbuster. this is NOT the way to do it.

Say you put some actors in front of a blue screen and ask them to act natural. If the result is miserable, no matter how rich you are, and how many tricks you have up your sleeve, the result will be miserable.

Plus, there is no way a blue screen can thicken an ultra-thin storyline.

And beware, there can be more problems. No matter how much special effects you throw in, Tobey Maguire never looks sexy. And if the Jim Carey trick doesn't work - don't waste more time. And major bells should go ringing if you never feel sorry for Mary Jane, and the villains will remain as flat as a piece of paper.

Maybe this is a lesson on How to waste money big time. Take out all the bad guys, let them be good guys, and put all the blame on a piece of tar that fell from the sky. Brilliant rubbish.

Say you managed to trick half your audience, there's still the other half. Half is NOT enough for the blockbuster.

Suppose you did all that, think of it this way: You can always try again, for it's never too late for a sequel.

The Last Sin Eater (2007)

Good acting, incoherent storytelling

[7/10 · 19 May 2007]

Let me start off by saying I am not a Christian (I DO believe in God but I'm afraid that doesn't make me a Christian) - and to answer your question: YES, this is a *Christian* movie, with a very clear message, but I won't spoil the plot for you.

The story in a nutshell is the awakening of a Welsh community in early America, coming to terms with their dark history, seen through the eyes of a ten year old child.

There are flaws. It's based on a novel, so the director had to make difficult choices to narrow down the plot for screen time. The editing wasn't good and led to some incoherency and superficial plot holes. The story sometimes wasn't going anywhere, and the 'horror' scenes best could've been left out, they seem out of place. Special effects looked cheap. Last and least: the accents. They should've invested a bit more in accent training because this sounded like a far fetched (teethless) dialect..

But there's some good performances to be admired. First of all, I tip my hat for Liana Liberato. What a great actress at such a young age. Secondly Soren Fulton did a great job and there was lots of chemistry between him and Liana. And what about Louise Fletcher?! Excellent. The actress who once played the horrid nurse Pratched (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest).. she performed wonderfully and was brilliantly cast.

So let's see what we have here. If you take all these things into account and you're not scared off by evangelism - not bad for a Sunday afternoon.

Drømmen (2006)

Fails miserably..

[2/10 · 7 December 2006]

A sentimental school drama set in Denmark, 1969, "We Shall Overcome" offers a pathetic Danish take on US culture. Frits (Janus Dissing Rathke), a flower-power obsessed, naive 13-year-old, exits with half his ear hanging off from brutal master Lindum-Svendsen's (Bent Mejding) office. Lindum-Svendsen, a school director, portrayed as a fascistoid tyrant, has the local community in control. Lindum-Svendsen's gone too far this time, and with his father, recovering from a mental breakdown (sure, there wasn't enough drama already..), and overly stereotyped hippie music teacher Mr Svale ('Hi, call me Freddie'), Frits stands up for justice.

Tell you what. It's so unconvincing, over-(method-)acted, and so full of misery, that as a 'family' picture this grotesque -filled with cliché's- excuse for a movie fails miserably to convince non-Scandinavian audiences. Sorry, kind danish readers, to crash like this into your sentimental journeys.. But it's definitely NOT a tale about a 'boy becoming a man by fighting the system'. The boy never becomes a man, but rather remains a naive, big eyed cry-face. If you call a church of small minded small town folk, led by a dictator like cartoonish character "the system", I'm sorry if I'm missing something.

If you're into family pictures, go see Happy Feet instead..

The Adolescent (1979)

Easily overlooked masterpiece

[9/10 · 10 June 2006]

Directed by no-one less than Jeanne Moreau, this movie, known for it's quality as one of the standards in the 'Coming of age' genre, is far more than that. It's a story about 'La douceur de vivre', or the 'The gentle way of life' - the pureness of French country-life in the years before the second world war. It's an extremely well crafted story of love, death and life, and the little secrets the villagers share, seen through the eyes of a perfectly authentic 13-year-old girl.

Simone Signoret gives a stunning performance, subtle and genuine, as the grand-mere (Mamie) of Marie, guiding her grandchild through the summer and her first encounters with love and romance. Marie falls in love with a Jewish doctor, 30 years of age, only to find that the doctor has more interest in her Dutch mother, who is in the middle of marital troubles with her dominant spouse. Marie realizes she will be the only one who can save her parents marriage and, with the help of Mamie, consults the local 'witch' to create a love-potion.

The question is, will everything return to normal, before the end of summer? And if war awaits, will life ever be the same again? One thing's for sure: you'll only lose childhood once, and it will never return...

Tur & retur (2003)

Very funny movie, for both kids and parents.

[8/10 · 21 September 2005]

This one brings back memories of classics like The Parent Trap, with a gender twist. Amanda Davin plays Martin and Julia, both from broken families and decide to swap lives. It's a funny, entertaining movie with some really funny moments. Especially the wedding scenes are particularly funny. Martin's huge grandmother is hilarious.

Amanda does a very good acting job playing a girl and a boy, very distinctively. I also liked the refreshing music, and production design is great.

This has lots of international potential, for a Scandinavian movie. It tells a universal story - if you get the chance, possibly with your kids - go see it.

Closer (I) (2004)

NOT a feel good movie!

[3/10 · 24 August 2005]

Supposedly, this movie portrays us human beings as who we *really* are. All in all this movie paints a far too negative picture. It's not a love story; merely a study about human relationships, with lots of cynical undertones.

The acting is (apart from Portman's performance) mediocre. Cinematography is quite good. I loved the music.

If you believe all people are like this... you're in for a surprise. Don't be a cynic you're wasting your time.

Summing things up (want to keep it short after so much said about it), it's a feel-bad movie. As such quite rare from the Hollywood factories. Be warned.

Anger Management (2003)

Don't expect too much, and have a ball!

[8/10 · 7 May 2003]

Very funny! No really, just don't listen to what anyone tells you about it! In perspective, it's a an excellent movie with funny plot twists, quite good acting, and a lot in it for everybody. I've seen quite some shrink-patient flicks (for comparison: think of "What about Bob?", Analyze This/That and Richard Gere's "Mr. Jones") and this one is refreshing, and if you're willing to laugh, VERY funny! BTW, have we become bored with the (almost always cynical) Nicholson character?! I mean - what a BRILLIANT actor!

Don't watch if you're easily irritated!

The Bourne Identity (2002)

Very entertaining! Matt Damon sexier than ever!

[8/10 · 7 May 2003]

Watching this Ludlum results in (how obvious) questions questions questions yearning to be answered... Don't expect a good action movie, I mean, if you want that - go watch (yet-another) Schwarzenegger. This is supposed to be a mystery. That's quite what it is. Leaves a lot of puzzles unsolved at the end and the still and/or step-by-step function of your DVD player won't help you - rather disappoint you.

I've found this movie very entertaining, so did my girlfriend! According to her Matt Damon has "never been sexier"; I mean, who am I to disagree..? I was charmed by the fact that this was shot in Europe. Europe looks prettier than ever - Paris is beautiful, Matt's Dutch is excellent (so is his German), and the car chase through the streets of Paris is an amazing piece of set work!

Chris Cooper is excellent! He deserves (another) Oscar for this work! Always very much American, vulnerable, straight-forward, subtle & natural acting - makes him a reason alone to watch this movie!

Not an artistic masterpiece, just one of those good old fashioned 'European' spy movies. If you're into that, go see it! You won't be disappointed!