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WKamp
Reviews
Die fremde Frau (2004)
A German "Obsession"
The Vertigo-like atmosphere of this German film is a welcome change to the German TV- thriller genre. Director Glasner knows his Hitchcock and refers to a dozen of the master's classics. Bernard Hermann's Vertigo-Score dominates the dreamlike atmosphere of this story of passion, guilt and revenge. Not easy to understand (don't glimpse or you'll miss the clues) but always interesting to watch, it is a real oddity. I liked the terrible mother (another Hitchcock standard) best - a great performance. The story is very artificial and far-fetched, but it doesn't matter: it is all about style and atmosphere. If you like Hitchcock, DePama or Mario Bava - this is for you!
The Interpreter (2005)
not convincing, no thrills
I wanted to like this film. Sydney Pollack is a liberal-minded director with an interesting filmography. But I found myself asking why Kidman had to play the part and not a black actress. She never convinces as a half-African fighter for freedom in the disguise of an interpreter...Too many compromises -Pollack - hints at something like this in the DVD specials - and no thrills. The ending is neither touching nor thrilling. The alternative end which you can find on the DVD is even worse - a naive dreamer's version of what politics should be like. Technically a perfect film, as for the contents: unconvincing and flat. Sorry Sydney, but the UN as a location is not enough as a concept for a convincing political film.
Saboteur (1942)
Entertaining Hitchcock tale
There are many familiar Hitchcock elements (of previous and later films) and this time they mix to a jolly, but hardly suspenseful piece of entertainment. You can tell that Dorothy Parker had a hand in the script, the most memorable scenes are the dialogues of hero Cummings with the blind man and his encounter with a rather bizarre group of circus people. The famous climax on the Statue of Liberty seems a bit heavy-handed - judged by today´s standards, but also compared to other Hitch monument finals (e.g. Blackmail, North by Northwest).