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The Proposition (2005)
Plodding
I've never seen a Western before, let alone an Australian Western, but The Proposition sounded promising. Having sat down and watched a Western now, I'm not sure I'd rush to see another.
Like I said, The Proposition sounded promising, but I was let down by a slow, meandering plot that really didn't seem to go anywhere. I felt as if nothing was going to happen and the bleak surroundings lent to a heavy atmosphere.
In saying that, when something did happen, I was made to sit up and take notice. The violence is graphic and vicious and the acting is generally very good; Ray Winstone was excellent.
I may be in the minority, but I believe with a bit of pace, The Propsition could have been a very good film.
Dancer in the Dark (2000)
Different
I wouldn't say I am a massive Bjork fan. I wouldn't say I am a massive fan of musicals, either. However, the good folk of IMDb seemed to think Dancer in the Dark was a decent film, so I thought I'd give it a go.
I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the film. I found Bjork convincing in her role and the script ultimately touching. The songs were not what I'd expect of a musical, but then I wouldn't expect Bjork to star in one either. I found myself admiring the Bjork character throughout and felt great sympathy for her towards and at the end.
Dancer in the Dark is 'different' to any musical I'd have expected. It was worth a watch.
Kidulthood (2006)
Brutal
I started watching Kidulthood entirely by mistake. I was flicking through the channels and I really didn't want to watch a film, but there was nothing else on, so I watched it for a little while 'just to see what it was like'. Anyway, I think I missed the first five minutes, but I watched the rest of the film, despite continually thinking, 'I'm going to turn this off in a minute, I don't want to watch a film'.
I can't relate to this film. I'm twenty-two, so only a few years older than the kids starring, but I'm not from London and I didn't grow up 'in da hood'. I have never known anyone who carries, or has carried a knife. I've never seen a gun. Don't get me wrong though, I'm working class and live in a working class area, about forty miles from London. I know these things go on, but I've never seen them and so, I cannot relate to Kidulthood.
Now then, I found the storyline fairly believable. The idea of covering everything that society despises in kids, into one film and a twenty-four hour period, was an interesting one. As the film covers one twenty-four hour period, everything happens quickly. I wouldn't say that was necessarily a bad thing, far from it. From scene to scene something always happens in this film - it's never given a chance to sit back or plod along. There's always something happening.
Kidulthood is brutal in it's portrayal of kids and their habits. It's definitely worth a watch.
2046 (2004)
Confusion
From the synopsis on my PVR, I thought 2046 sounded like an interesting film... and it probably was, somewhere along the line. The problem I had was that I really couldn't tell what was going on, or why it was going on. I would quite like to blame that on my own ineptness, but I can't really. I read every line and watched every scene, but as far as I could tell, 2046 was a story about a writer, who occasionally had sex with various women, at least one of whom he paid to sleep with. Other than that, the film didn't seem to offer anything.
I did want to like 2046 (it's foreign - wouldn't that have made me a better person?), but I felt I was given no reason to. After half an hour I didn't know what was happening, but I thought, okay, maybe things will pick up, so I carried on watching. After an hour I was still in the same position. I watched the entire film in the hope that I would find some explanation, but that didn't happen.
I obviously didn't completely despise the film, otherwise I would not be rating it 3/10. I think that rating is given for the idea. Or at least, what I thought the idea was, but I'm not sure if that was ever accomplished. All in all, I finished this film feeling confused. I didn't understand much of what was going on and feel if the story was explained more concisely, I would have liked this a lot. Of course, that's just a feeling.