W"A"Z
W"A"Z
WΔz not waz.
(Okay, let's call it "WAZ") A very Se7enish noir, where Stellan Skarsgard takes the detective role with by the books rookie played by Melissa George and dodgy cop colleague John Sharian.
Local thugs start to turn up with their loved ones dead. The police are not too concerned when they think it is a turf war, but then they realise it is something more - and perhaps they know more than they are telling the new girl.
No spoiler to tell you there is a sort of Lady Vengeance plot, related to a behavioural scientist's theory that there is no such thing as love nor altrusim and every decision is motivated by the individual's survival. The victims are forced to make a choice for their own survival.
The final scene between Skarsgard and the "killer" is as gruesome as anything in Seven, and once again it is violence in context rather than an art installation depicting gory consequences of the act.
(Okay, let's call it "WAZ") A very Se7enish noir, where Stellan Skarsgard takes the detective role with by the books rookie played by Melissa George and dodgy cop colleague John Sharian.
Local thugs start to turn up with their loved ones dead. The police are not too concerned when they think it is a turf war, but then they realise it is something more - and perhaps they know more than they are telling the new girl.
No spoiler to tell you there is a sort of Lady Vengeance plot, related to a behavioural scientist's theory that there is no such thing as love nor altrusim and every decision is motivated by the individual's survival. The victims are forced to make a choice for their own survival.
The final scene between Skarsgard and the "killer" is as gruesome as anything in Seven, and once again it is violence in context rather than an art installation depicting gory consequences of the act.
My livejournal Frightfest reports from days gone by (2004 to 2011)
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http://surprisetruck.livejournal.com/tag/frightfest
Well made, well played, with a good twist at the end.
jonbly wonders... when she tested the first two pairs, both died. Why? Surely one should survive each test? There are two plausible options that spring to mind - either they die of their injuries, or the wrong gang finds them when she dumps them - but it misdirects the viewer as to the nature of what she's trying to do in a way that is... cheating, really. Is this about her mission, or revenge? If revenge, why let the mother live?
8.5/10
jonbly wonders... when she tested the first two pairs, both died. Why? Surely one should survive each test? There are two plausible options that spring to mind - either they die of their injuries, or the wrong gang finds them when she dumps them - but it misdirects the viewer as to the nature of what she's trying to do in a way that is... cheating, really. Is this about her mission, or revenge? If revenge, why let the mother live?
8.5/10
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I was interested in this movie, as I work as a scientist researching evolutionary genetics, and was curious as to how my job fits into the plot of such a film. So, I was dissapointed that the scientific theories were very loosely involved, and basically cast aside and ignored once we found out who the 'killer' was. That's just me being a nerd though, I enjoyed it aside from that.
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Very well made, and provokes some interesting thoughts about altruism. Although I didn't think so beforehand I think I may have read the story it's based on after all!
Excellent performances all round and nicely shot, hopefully will do well with a wider audience!
Excellent performances all round and nicely shot, hopefully will do well with a wider audience!
"There is no Good, there is no Evil... There is only flesh..."
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walked out at one point as it was pretty dull seen it all before nonsense with Stellan over doing the macho thing.
went back in a while later as Alan Jones insisted the ending was worth it, and it was. really quite touching and probably the most emotional moment onscreen if it hadnt been for The Orphanage.
however.. i do not buy for one second that a mothers love for her child is not as strong as an old mans love/lust for a younger male. bit sex.ist really
went back in a while later as Alan Jones insisted the ending was worth it, and it was. really quite touching and probably the most emotional moment onscreen if it hadnt been for The Orphanage.
however.. i do not buy for one second that a mothers love for her child is not as strong as an old mans love/lust for a younger male. bit sex.ist really
Last edited by ghouldrool on Wed Feb 27, 2008 9:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
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I think it falls between two stools: it's a movie about peculiar philosophical / mathematical / genetic concepts wrapped up in the shape of a Saw movie, and doesn't really hang together as either. As with many other movies this year, I didn't see the twist coming. Maybe I'm just getting thick in my dotage....
reply to jonbly
doesn't it vary? fist guy hangs himself cos he feels guilty, second guy dies of injuries, mother we don't find out, Pierre is waiting to be murdered - this is in fact because although the kller's not watching them now, they can't cope with what they've done. So it's not cheating. It's that even the most evil people have some good in them, but the killer isn't noticing.