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berlin55
Reviews
Sorjonen: Muraalimurhat (2021)
For those with Sorjonen withdrawal symptoms
Familiarity can breed contempt, but in this case when there is a strong main character and history which you can draw on, the film can still manage to pack the punches of the series and provide twists. Of course it is not like watching all those cliffhangers and episodes, however there is enough for the fan and certainly a lot for Nordic Noir aficionados. I think that Lena could have her own spin off series too. If you think my 10 is over generous that is because quite frankly there are no other series/films that quite get me - I would say it is like someone who is drinking espressos and suddenly has tepid Earl Grey tea. Enjoy this film and go back to the series. The series and film are well scripted and the two central back stories do the business. Thanks to the director and cast for making my Sunday entertaining.
Wu ji (2005)
Love and Genres
I think that the basic premise of this film is to do with levels of love: - love of your people, your family - and love in the sense of comradeship, love in terms of loyalty in the military sense, and love between a man and woman. These different kinds of love appeal to cultures in different ways - and perhaps in one country sentimentality is seen as "cheesy" - however I think then one would have to call "City Lights" or "Miracle in Milan" cheesy - which they certainly aren't - and of course in the latter one has supernatural happenings - in some ways similar to "Promise". I found from my own point of view the film had faults, but never once did I see this as a martial arts film like "Crouching Tiger" - it is more in line with the Chinese ghost stories - a genre I think this film has obvious ties to. The cinematography in the film was brilliant. I felt aesthetically it was at times quite breathtaking. Having said that the special effects did at times border on the comical - yet anyone who knows anything about Chinese ghost stories will know this is pardonable. We have to not only suspend our disbelief, but accept the generic parameters. The film is full of symbolism redolent of Chinese mythology Colours e.g. red & white)- yet as we know from the director's interview (DVD)- this is not a film of nationalism, but one of accepting differences - and in many ways asserting one's identity against a hegemonic authority. This is true in the film - and in the cast who come from several Asian countries - a point made by the director. I have given it 10 points - because I dislike films being criticized for not meeting generic expectations - when they actually never intended to be in that genre. Secondly, because I am a sentimentalist and this film worked for me.