Nov 5, 2008

Some films I’ve seen recently

Wall–E. Would you believe it’s possible to make up a 2-hour love story between 2 robots while avoiding artificiality, clichés and boring/sappy episodes? The author of this film proves it is. However, the love story is not the main narrative thread, but a lateral one, while the main idea I think centers around a cutely-packed yet very well defined critique of consumer society and a look at the grim future it will very likely lead us to. What's frustrating is, of course, how Disney manages to come up with a "deus ex machina" solution that would save humanity from that grim future. Yes, the freaking happy ending!

Iron Man. This must be the worst film I’ve seen in a while. Discouragingly predictable – there wasn’t even one scene that surprised me in any way. Is there anything worse in a movie?

Gomorra. A film made after the book of Roberto Saviani, introducing the underworld of Naples' mafia and the way it stretches over everything, even "harmless" business sectors like fashion or recycling. Frankly, I wanted to watch it mostly because of the controversy surrounding the story of its making, i.e. how the fiction writer engages with terrorism (which brought about older interests raised by DeLillo's Mao II) However, I do understand where all those awards come from. My only comment is related to the film’s fragmentariness – lots of loose ends and pieces that don’t connect in a very clear way.

Katyn. Wajda’s film on the Katyn massacre – definitely a must-see. Particularly appreciated how the tension builds throughout the two hours and then bursts out in the final part. Truly powerful ending!

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