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Kim_Kobusch_Simonsen
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The score is the sum of points (12, 4, 1) divided by the square root of titles watched. The score is used for ranking and sum for qualification to the list.
Attempt at a ranking system:
1 points: Un Certain Regard Selection, Queer Palm Winner, Prize of the Ecumenical Jury, François Chalais Prize 2 points: In Selection, Camera d'Or 4 points: Best Screenplay, Palme d'Or Short 5 points: Best Director, Un Certain Regard Winner 6 points: Jury Prize, FIPRESCI 8 points: Grand Prix 10 points: Palme d'Or
Reviews
Du som er i himlen (2021)
God's Will vs. Science
Tea Lindenburg's feature film debut tells the story of a difficult birth through the eyes of the eldest daughter of a rural family living in 19th century Denmark.
During the difficult birth the mother is convinced that she has seen God's will in a dream and therefore refuse taking medicine. Using the perspective of the daughter gave me the feeling of watching the situation develop as a bystander who wishes for the best outcome but without the ability to help.
I found the use of colors and shadows added a lot to my interpretation of the film. The dream sequences in particular were really well done and achieved a level of ambiguity for what the right decision was. If made by a less visionary director and less experienced cinematographer, I expect this would be a pretty average film for me. On top of that the performances (even the kids) did a surprisingly good job in making this feel authentic.
The lead performance is given by Flora Ofelia Hofmann Lindahl who will be remembered by some Danish parents and their kids from her win at a Junior song contest. This didn't have an impact on my viewing experience but I expect others could be distracted by it.
My rating of 8/10 reflects a viewing experience that I really liked - and I would consider calling this a great film. After watching this I am looking very much forward to the next feature from Tea Lindenburd.
The Last Duel (2021)
A Scandalous Tale of Love and Honor with a "Rashamon-ish" Narrative
For the past 2 decades Ridley Scott has been very hit or miss for me. My expectations have therefore become modest, but "The Last Duel" was a welcoming surprise.
I think the choice of using a "Rashamon-ish" narrative was a refreshing way to tell this story. Furthermore, I want to give praise to the editor Claire Simpson, who I will argue made the right choice to trim the scenes that are repeated - reducing the runtime to 155 minutes (which I find to be a long but fitting runtime for this story). I find it very fitting that the individual story lines end at the trial where people disagree on what is true while the audience (to some degree) knows.
Despite being refreshingly different and throughly entertaining, there were a few elements that took me out of the film. Firstly, the story is set in France but is told in English. If the names of people and places had been changed this would not had bothered me at all. Secondly, I found the make-up/costumes peculiar in many instances (especially Ben Affleck) while the actors were still very easy to recognize. If this was fantasy, I wouldn't have an issue with this. But since this is based on an actual event I would have preferred to see less eye-catching make-up/costumes.
For the 2022 Oscar's I am surprised there was much more campaign for Ridley Scott's other film "House of Gucci" (which I would rate as "Meh") instead of "The Last Duel", which I liked and would happily see a second time.
Blonde (2022)
A Messy, But Beautiful Mosaic of a Fictional Marilyn Monroe
As a cinephile who is bored by movies that fail to utilize the many tools cinema has to offer, I like "Blonde" on a technical level. In my opinion, cinema should aim at utilizing its tools creatively when it fits the narrative. And I think it does so here.
In the case of Blonde, I see the many changes of aspect ratio and color vs black/white to be a juxtaposition of (the fictional) Marilyn Monroe's struggle with her own identity (i.e. Marilyn vs Norma). Furthermore, I like that we don't see one version of her identity in color and the other in black and white because I believe that Marylin (and Norma) are both. A mosaic inspired by (the real) Marylin Monroe's photographs therefore feels very appropriate to me.
However, one controversial choice is insufficient to turn this into a good movie for me. I don't find Marilyn's struggles (daddy issues) interesting and I think a shorter version would work better for me. Despite Ana de Armas strong performance I therefore (only) give this movie 6/10, which means I enjoyed the movie but am unlikely to return to it.
Historien om Danmark (2017)
A Decent Result to A Near-Impossible Challenge
Can the entire history of a country be told in 10 hours? Probably not. But Historien om Danmark (2017) does a pretty good job.
In this 10 episode documentary, selective parts of Danish history is told through narration, reconstructions and interviews. The narration and reconstructions are mixed together in a very fluent way, which gives a sense of walking through history. In order to provide evidence and historical context, experts on specific time periods have been interviewed. A few times we see how the experts work, which I find strengthens their autority. I find the narration to be done very well, the interviews to be relevant and the reconstructions slightly overdramatic.
My main criticism on the documentary is that the process of selecting events leave out a lot of the transitions between periods. This leaves the documentary series with several continuity breaks at best. Some of the events chosen also seem to be chosen out of their importance today rather than their relevance to the past. The most obvious example of this is how pre-20th century women in general had very little individual impact on history but are heavily featured in the series.
Several people on the right side of the political spectrum in Denmark have found the last 2 episodes of the series to be left-leaning. Since these periods were the longest periods with the socialdemocrats in power it seems necessary to me that socialism was in focus. But I do agree to some extend that these episodes go to far in painting socialism as the most important factor in giving Danish peoople better lives and overlooking important progress from the other side of the politcal spectrum. However, this is a minor criticism that has little influence on my overall rating.
Altogether, I find that Historien om Danmark (2017) takes on a near impossible challenge and manages to come out with an entertaining and informative product with unfortunate time-gaps, slightly over-dramatic reconstructions and some politically motivated cherry-picked events. My rating of 6 (almost 7) represents an experience of something that I enjoyed watching but am unlikely to return to.
OtherLife (2017)
Good Original Sci-Fi if You Haven't Seen Playtest
OtherLife is the story of a piece of software that can transport you into a dream-like world (like Total Recall). The movie discusses the implications of the software through the 2 developers' secret projects with the software.
For a low-budget science fiction movie there is a lot of positive things to point out. I was personally impressed with the visual effects and the courage to tell the story through the language of cinematography (dolly zooms, Dutch angles, color-grading, etc.). When it comes to acting and sound design I found the movie did a decent job and it never felt like an amateur low-budget movie to me.
Unfortunately there were 2 things that annoyed me about the movie: Firstly, the movie takes ideas from existing sci-fi which makes the story unoriginal and predictable (to some extend). It reminded me in particular of 2 Black Mirror episodes; White Christmas and Playtest. If you haven't seen Black Mirror I think you will find this more original, less predictable and consequently enjoy it more. Secondly, the protagonist is a very smart woman working on the software, but she only appears to be smart when working on the software and not in any other part of her life. I don't want to give any examples of this since that would spoil the plot. If you don't expect to share these issues then I believe you will like or maybe even love this movie.
In conclusion i enjoyed watching the movie, and I am surprised by the low rating (my ratings are usually 1-2 points under the average). Despite a few issues I will definitely keep my eyes open for this directors next project.
To me OtherLife is a decent movie which amounts to a 6/10 in my rating distribution.