Film 28 Review: Millions
Forgive me for the BIG jump in reviews (from film 14 to 28). Haven't had the time to write for the previous few which I wanted to. Decided to review the latest I've watched.
Disclaimer: I have yet to rid the disease of reading too many reviews of a film before watching it. Perhaps I'll carry that sickness forever, because I simply love to read about movies, every single one of them, regardless of whether I'll be watching them or not.
That said, the movie did not meet my expectations. 'Over-rated'... the initial thought. But first, the good points. Alexander Etel is perfectly cast as the highly imaginative and innocent young protaganist. Through the many 'appearances' of godly beings throughout the film, the audiences share his holy world, a world of angels and saints which he uses to replace the loss of his late mother. The boy convinces with his doe-eyed expressions and intimate heartfelt conversations with the saints who visit him every now and then.
The cinematography is unique, the settings are interesting and the way the whole movie was shot is very unusual... which could be a double-edged sword in terms of plot development. For me, this style achieves cinematic originality but compromises on the flow required for simple story-telling. There are far too many interjections and interruptions in the story... there are many moments when just as you are about to catch hold of something, the scene stops abruptly and leaves you dangling midway. This is all a little bit frustrating really, which ultimately results in a lack of emotion and inspiration in my mind as the movie reaches it ending.
The film is definitely watchable and deserves to be commended for having many special features not commonly seen in other movies. Whether these features are pulled off effectively is a matter of subjectivity; they didn't work too well for me but may leave a huge impression on you.
Rating: 7.4
posted by cubicle @ 8:34 AM
1 stopped by the cubicle
1 Comments:
I must add that as a movie driven by superb child actors, ppl tend to overrate them. They are given the benefit of the doubt, so to speak. Which doe-eyed child won't tug at the right heartstrings?
Allow me to quote you in your review of a certain movie:
Freddie Highmore is even more amazing; a young boy his age overshadowing the famous, Oscar-nominated Johnny Depp is truly no mean feat. Forget the "has-been" Haley Joel Osment and the progressively irritating Dakota Fanning... this boy is the real deal. He is so matured and convincing beyond his years that you wonder if he's constantly possessed while acting. Or is he even acting? He is that scaringly good.
Definitely we see some trend here. Child actors have certainly come of age in recent times.
Even TCS child actors have caught on the bug to turn in surprisingly mature performances.
Still, I like to reserve my utmost praise for 10-year-old Ivan Dobronravov. As the child actor for the Russian film The Return, he turned in a performance which will etch itself in your memories for long to come. In a way, the sparse and stark film lent his performance a greater air of subtlety and expressiveness. We are not distracted by props and computer-generated effects. Still, that performance has by far been unparalleled by anything seen in the Western world.
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