La French (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Cédric Jimenez
	Actors: Jean Dujardin, Gilles Lellouche
	Country: F
	Genre: Polar
	Conditions of visioning: 26.12.2014, Pathé Orleans
Synopsis: When the judge Pierre Michel (Dujardin) is nominated for the "grand banditisme" (organised crime) in Marseille, the major drug organisation is the French connection, lead by Gaetan "Tany" Zampa (Lellouche) producing heroine mostly for the North Amercian market.
Review: The story is based on the true story of the judge Michel, murdered End of 1981. At that time, I was very small but I have seen this was very chocking for my parents. The movie follows both the tracking and fall of the French connection and also the rise and death of the judge Michel. Funny point is that the bad boss Zampa and the judge look very similar. This becomes more obvious when Zampa behaves well (not like just a criminal) and when Michel behaves bad (like a small criminal).  The acting of Dujardin is strange to me. He seems to be laughing at many people and I do not know whether this is supposed to be so. The directing is good as it is realistic but not too much.
Rating: 7 /10

American splendor (2003)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2003
	Director: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
	Actors: Paul Giamatti, Hope Davis
	Country: USA
	Genre: Drama, Documentary
	Conditions of visioning: 20.12.2014, DVD, English version without subtitlte
Synopsis: Harvey Pekar has no clue of drawing but likes comic story telling and jazz. He starts writing the stories while one friend makes the images. He tells his own story, working as a clerk, living in the middle of the Rust belt city of Cleveland. One day one fan Joyce (Davis) comes to Cleveland to meet him.
Review: The story is very touching. Although he is very pessimistic about his own life, the will of story telling and the taste for simple neighbourhood makes the movie very interesting and beautiful. The story sounds a bit like Charles Bukowski's novels.  The form is innovative mixing comic book style with classical movie style and well done! Especially when Harvey meets Joyce in the train station. The acting of Giamatti is amazing for his perfectly fitting face. Also the friends of Harvey look not only realistic but also great. We go through many steps of his life with so much authenticity. I love it.  The cover of the DVD and some posters looks of course very good due to the mix of images from the movie and from the comic books. In addition, I put two covers of the comic book. One of them is a comic book about the time spent during the movie.
Rating: 8 /10

Jean-Philippe (2006)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2006
	Director: Laurent Tuel (Un jeu d'enfants)
	Actors: Fabrice Luchini (Profs), Johnny Hallyday, Guilaine Londez, Jackie Berroyer (Calvaire)
	Country: F
	Genre: Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: 25.12.2014, SD VOD, 11" computer screen
Synopsis: What would be the life of Fabrice (Luchini) if his idol Johnny (Hallyday) had never reached celebrity?
Review: The concept is interesting, and allows showing the acting talents of the French mega-star Johnny Hallyday playing his own role, and he is rather good at this job. I am usually not a big fan of Luchini but I liked him this time as well. Fabrice is the biggest fan of Johnny, to a point that he named his daughter like Johnny's and that his passion/obsession threatens his couple. After a shock, he awakes in a world in which Johnny never became famous. He then tries to find his hero and guide him to the path he never met. There are quite some funny moments ans the overall story is quite satisfying.
Rating: 6 /10

The Pixal Story (2007)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2007
	Director: Leslie Iwerks
	Actors: Stacy Keach, John Lasseter, Brad Bird
	Country: USA
	Genre: Documentary
	Conditions of visioning: 27.12.2014, SD VOD, 11" computer screen
Synopsis: The story of the famous animation studio from the youth of its creator John Lasseter to the making of Cars.
Review: I knew already a bit about the story of Pixar from some documentary on the DVD of their short movies, and on other DVDs. This documentary is a good summary, not revolutionary but it presents the fact in a very interesting way. John Lasseter is really shown as the genius behind the creation of the firm, and indeed he is a visionary who knew and was convinced before everybody that animated movies were part of the future. His struggle to work with Disney is particularly amazing. I was also astonished to learn this Steve Jobs (yes the guy from Apple) is the one that funded the company so that it can be born, and he also supported them all along in their choices and decisions to become an independent company. Once this basis established, we learn about the making of their movies one after the other (I put my personal rating in parenthesis from memory to see how I felt the evolution): Toy Story (9/10), A Bug's Life (6/10), Toy Story 2 (8/10), Monsters Inc. (7/10), Finding Nemo (8/10), The Incredibles (9/10) and Cars (6/10). So to my feeling, they indeed managed to keep a relatively high level of quality throughout the first seven movies. When I was watching, I was always telling myself "ah yes that one was good, probably their best" until the next movie is introduced and I went "oh yeah that one was good as well" until The Incredibles which has been the best for me since it went out. I don't rate the documentary better because it is the true story that is extraordinary, the movie only documents it correctly.
Rating: 6 /10

Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2006)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2006
	Director: Steve Carr (Dr. Dolittle 2)
	Actors: Kevin James, Keir O'Donnell, Jayma Mays
	Country: USA
	Genre: Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: 26.12.2014, SD VOD, 32" TV
Synopsis: Paul Bart (Carr) always fails the police exam because of his hypoglycemia. Instead, he takes very seriously his job as security head at the mall.
Review: We were looking for a comedy out of the ordinary, and Mall Cop is a bit of that. The humour is a bit offbeat, often making fun of this overweight guy who is however very fit and flexible. The usual challenges are shown: meeting a woman, fighting a bully, and defeating the evil guy who wanted to rob the mall, all of it in a light humoristic style. At some point the movie even reminds me of a kind of parody of Die Hard 1 + 2. But it is not really funny and definitely too predictable and unrealistic: this guy alone defeats a bunch of enemies who don't even carry guns... too easy.
Rating: 4 /10

Absolute Power (1997)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 1997
	Director: Clint Eastwood (Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino)
	Actors: Clint Eastwood (The Good The Bad and The Ugly), Gene Hackman (The Conversation, Enemy of the State), Ed Harris (History of Violence), Scott Glenn (The Silence of the Lambs), Dennis Haysbert (24 TV-series)
	Country: USA
	Genre: Thriller, Polar
	Conditions of visioning: 23.12.2014, SD VOD, 32" TV
Synopsis: While robbing a rich house, genius burglar Luther Whitney (Eastwood) witnesses a murder involving a most influential character.
Review: I had quite forgotten about this movie until I found it on Netflix France (also showing that the choice is better than in Germany). It contains everything you can expect from a movie directed by Clint Eastwood and I loved that the story is told and shown as would have been in the 70's, my favorite period in cinema especially for this thriller/polar genre, although it was produced in the otherwise quite boring period of the end of the 90's. That alone is an incredible performance. At that time Clint started to play aging characters (right after The Bridges of Madison County), himself reflecting on the approaching end of life. The story is solid although far-fetched (what are the odds for that to happen?!), and played by great actors: Eastwood, Hackman, Glenn, Harris. All very natural and a pleasure to watch.
Rating: 8 /10

Friday the 13th (2009)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2009
	Director: Marcus Nispel (Pathfinder, Conan)
	Actors: Jared Padalecki, Amanda Righetti, Derek Mears, Richard Burgi (The Sentinel TV-series)
	Country: USA
	Genre: Horror
	Conditions of visioning: 22.12.2014, SD VOD, 32" TV
Synopsis: A bunch of stoned teenagers in the forrest along Crystal Lake, a masked killed... Jason is definitely back.
Review: In a recent article in the Mad Movies magazine (about the Nightmare on Elm Street / Freddy saga), I read some bad review about the most recent episode. Looking for some fright one evening, I decided to watch the latest movie in a saga I know better: Friday 13th. This one is more a reboot, skipping the story of the first Friday 13th (in which the mother is the killer) to show it as prologue only, and thus jumping firectly to the part when Jason Voorhees is the killer. It was produced by Michael Bay after he did the same with the remake of  The Texas Chainsaw Massacre which I found good at the time, maybe because more centered around a good actress (Jessica Biel) rather than around interexchangeable youngsters. The story in this new movie may not be less clever than the original ones from the 80's, but it feels definitely outdated. I am now conviced there is no more room for such boogeymen in our decade, except if one cleverly re-invents the genre like it was done in Scream or more recently in The Cabin in the Woods. Or you need to invent a new boogeyman like in Saw or Jeepers Creepers. But the good old Jason (although I like the character) become quickly all too boring. I don't even mention the actors whose performance doen't bring anything to the movie, only the plastic quality of some do. And where on Earth is the camera placement behind the branches (subjective shooting) and the haunting theme from Harry Manfredini's (tchi tchi tchi ha ha ha).
Rating: 2 /10

Ripoux contre Ripoux (1990)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 1990
	Director: Claude Zidi (La totale!, Astérix et Obélix contre César)
	Actors: Philippe Noiret (Le vieux Fusil, Topaz), Thierry Lhermitte (Les Bronzés 1-3), Guy Marchand
	Country: F
	Genre: Polar, Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: 21.12.2014, DVD, 11" computer screen
Synopsis: As Francois (Lhermitte) wishes to become commissioner, René (Noiret) keeps on living from his small-time corruption deals.
Review: Christmas holidays in France means watching old French movies. I got this one in a paper-box DVD some years ago at a flee market. I mistook it for the original movie Les Ripoux while it is actually the sequel. The best part in this movie is the location of most of the police action in the beautiful Montmartre area of Paris. The story is otherwise classic for a sequel: change threatens the relationship built during the first movie, and after some trial period everything ends for the best. The actors are good enough, especially Noiret whom I loved in Le vieux Fusil. It was pleasant to watch Ripoux contre Ripoux, but I would rather have watched the first movie, although both are anyway not the best that French polars can propose.
Rating: 5 /10

Nostalghia (1983)

	Also Known As: Nostalgia
	Year of first release: 1983
	Director: Andrei Tarkowskiy
	Actors: Oleg Yankowskiy, Domiziana Giordano, Erland Josephson
	Country: SU, I
	Genre: Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 14.12.2014, DVD, English version with English subtitles
Synopsis: The Russian poet Andrei Gorchakov (Yankowskiy), accompanied by guide and translator Eugenia (Giordano), is traveling through Italy researching the life of an 18th-century Russian composer. In an ancient spa town, he meets the lunatic Domenico (Josephson), who years earlier had imprisoned his own family in his house for seven years to save them from the evils of the world. Andrei tries to learn more about Domenico. Nostalgic dreams and reality start to mix.
Review: The story is actually good. The dreams meaningfull about what has been lost by the Russian poet once he left his country. Andrei Tarkowskiy tried in 1981 to defect from UdSSR but did not bear it because of the left wife and son. In Nostalghia, the poet misses his wife. In 1982, Tarkowskiy definitely escaped UdSSR to stay in Paris while making movies in Italy and Sweden. Nostalghia is thus his first movie started as Soviet movie maker and finished as a refugee. This makes the story and its meaning even stronger. But the directing is very bad. The sound track is almost not used. Although the lights are used with subtlety and the last scene in the pool is nice, but everything is extremely slow and distant, letting the impression that the three characters did not understand each other during the takes and/or are not coordinated.  The original version is clearly not English and this Italian version could not be found in the DVD.
Rating: 2 /10

Nuda v Brne (2003)

	Also Known As: Langeweile in Brünne
	Year of first release: 2003
	Director: Vladimir Morávek
	Actors: Katerina Holánová, Jan Budar
	Country: CZ
	Genre: Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: 06.12.2014, DVD, OV Czech version with German subtitles
Synopsis: The young Stako (Budar) is driven by his brother to Brno in order to get his first date with Olja (Holánová). The friends of Olja are preparing her to her first sex, but both are extremely terrified by this first experience.
Review: The story itself is quite humouristic without the subtlety typical from Czech movies like Up and down, Something like happiness or I served the King of England. But the context is very funny: the neighbour appartments where other affairs are taking place. The casting and the acting is done so that both main characters are shown as very stupid, even if they just want the same as many other people. Some scenes are very authentic (Olja chating with her friends) or very funny (Olja getting rid of her mother) but others are very long. Again a disappointment looking for movies similar to good ones.
Rating: 3 /10

Gran casino (1947)

	Also Known As: Le Grand Casino
	Year of first release: 1947
	Director: Luis Buñuel
	Actors: Jorge Negrete, Libertad Lamarque, José Baviera, Mercedes Barba
	Country: MEX
	Genre: Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 05.12.2014, DVD, OV Spanish
Synopsis: After the mysterious disappearance of an oil field owner, José Enrique Irigoyen, two workers are hired. Gerardo (Negrete) endorses the team management and sees he is blocked due to Fabio, the casino owner (Baviera), who would like to get control of the oil fields. Soon, the owner's sister Mercedes Irigoyen (Lamarque) arrives from Argentina, and, believing that Gerardo killed her brother to keep the wells for himself, she starts working as a singer under a false name in the same casino her brother disappeared, in order to find out what exactly happened.
Review: The idea and the desertic location is a kind of classical for a Western, but there is no cowboy here. Every turn in the story is announced well in advance so that there is no surprise. Negrete is presented as the charismatic and fine guy especially with light and camera effects. There are several songs locating the movie far from the Western. I knew from Buñuel only Los olvidados from his Mexican period and the rather his French period involving Michel Piccoli and Fernando Rey. I may have to come back to these to show the best of Luis Buñuel.
Rating: 4 /10

Love Actually (2003)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2003
	Director: Richard Curtis (Notting Hill, About Time)
	Actors: Hugh Grant (Cloud Atlas), Liam Neeson (Taken, Star Wars Episode 1), Alan Rickman (Die Hard, Galaxy Quest, Harry Potter 1-8), Colin Firth (The King's Speech), Keira Knighley (Pirates of the Caribbean 1-3), Bill Nighy (Shaun of the Dead), Martin Freeman (The Hobbit 1-3)
	Country: GB, USA, F
	Genre: Comedy, Romance
	Conditions of visioning: 20.12.2014, HD VOD, Home cinema
Synopsis: About the affective life of several apparently disconnected characters starting five weeks before Christmas.
Review: This movie is already ten years old and I had never seen it, not being my favorite genre. But with Christmas approaching, I got into the spirit and decided to watch this "ultimate romantic comedy". I thought the story would be classical, but I was in fact surprised by the approach of showing not only the journey of one couple but of many! That idea is original, was hinted by the movie poster and looking at the posters of other romantic comedies made since, was probably copied. This gives the opportunity for the famous (mainly) British cast to shine. I liked in particular Hugh Grant in his role of young Prime Minister, and Bill Nighy who in the end will display another kind of love, with a broader meaning, like the preamble of the movie led me to expect. On top of the main cast, the cameos are numerous: Rowan Atkinson (the Mr. Bean), Denise Richards, Elisha Cuthbert, Billy Bob Thornton... But if the fragmented rhythm is appropriate for most of the stories (the ones with Martin Freeman, Hugh Grant or Keira Knighley), for some others it is handicapping. I am mainly thinking about the one with Colin Firth which is going too fast to look true, and in the end is overly exaggerated. And talking about the endings, some other stories conclude on an overly romantic tone (the son of Liam Neeson, the story with Hugh Grant), the kind that it out of this world and makes your girlfriend complain: "why can't you be more romantic like in this movie?!!" So what started like an original concept ends up in the pure tradition of romantic comedies. But a good one. Researching for this review made me find out the more recent movie by the same director: About Time, that I will try to watch soon.
Rating: 7 /10

Fargo - Season 1 (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Writer: Noah Hawley + others
	Actors: Billy Bob Thornton (Armageddon, Bandits), Martin Freeman (The Hobbit 1-3, Sherlock TV-series), Allison Tolman, Colin Hanks (King Kong)
	Country: USA
	Genre: Polar, Black Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: December 2014, Blu-ray, Home cinema
Synopsis: Strange murders follow one another in the northern town of Bemidji. Lester Nygaard (Freeman) meets the strange character Lorne Malvo (Thornton), while police officer Molly Solverson (Tolman) tries to solve the cases.
Review: A TV-series inspired by the atypical movie from the Coen brothers, and produced by the VOD provider Netflix. I heard some good about it, so I pre-ordered it in Blu-ray some months ago, not knowing that I would be a Netflix customer by now and could get the series for free. I kept the Blu-ray anyway for the better image and sound quality. At first it looks like the series tries too hard to copy the successful elements of the movie: rural town in the frozen North, simple folk not so good looking and wearing unfashionable clothes, local accents and vocabulary, a pregnant woman, remarkable bandits (one if deaf), violent murders intruding in an otherwise peaceful town, ... Fortunately after the introductory first two episodes that feeling disappeared, probably helped by the remarkable performance by Billy Bob Thornton as a psychopath, and the lovable Marting Freeman (although his play reminds me too much of Bilbo in The Hobbit, I am curious to see how he plays in Sherlock). The series also keeps entertaining because of the unpredictable events in it (like in many modern series): bad things happen not only to the good guys but also to the bad guys! The summun is reached at the beginning of the fourth episode "Eating the Blame", when we understand the connection with Fargo the movie. Episode 7 "Who shaves the barber?" is not bad either when it shows Malvo it full swing. A second season is announced. If the episodes are shown in Germany on Netflix at the same time as they are released in the US, I will undoubtedly catch them.
Rating: 7 /10

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Peter Jackson (Bad Taste, The Lord of the Rings 1-3, Lovely Bones).
	Actors: Martin Freeman (Hot Fuzz, The Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy), Ian McKellen (X-men 1-3, The Lord of the Rings 1-3), Richard Armitage, Benedict Cumberbatch (Star Trek Into Darkness)
	Country: USA, NZ
	Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Epic
	Conditions of visioning: 15.12.2014, CINEMA theater, 3D, High Frame Rate
Synopsis: After having awakened the dragon Smaug (Cumberbatch), the company of Dwarves and Bilbo (Freeman) will have to protect their new fortune, while the King under the Mountain (Armitage) is changing.
Review: At last, the final chapter. I can still remember the day I went to see The Fellowship of the Ring in the theater back in 2001. I was not really looking forward to three new movies in the same universe, actually I haven't watched The Lord of the Rings trilogy in years, maybe because I have seen it too much. But in the end I got caught by the stories of Middle-Earth and had no problem watching An Unexpected Journey and The Desolation of Smaug several times. Actually I am more motivated now to go back to watch the story of Frodo and the Ring again. The ending of The Battle... puts you in perfect disposition for that. I am definitely not expecting a third trilogy in the years to come, but we never know. So what of this third movie? As I commented after watching the extras on The Desolation of Smaug Blu-ray, I learned that there were supposed to be two movies only, which explains the kind of anti-climactic start of The Battle of the Five Armies, and the lengths I felt in the rhythm. Those lengths especially spoiled a bit my viewing experience, as they sometimes took me out of the movie thinking: "OK guys let's move on now!". Not that I got bored (there is enough going on the screen to avoid that), but after watching all three movies I am definitely convinced that two would have been enough. It would also have been a more refreshing experience to have Guillermo del Toro directing instead of the same Peter Jackson. Again, not that he did a bad job, but some more new ideas and views could have been welcome. I put a lower rating to the third movie because of the reasons mentioned above (lengths), although it is hard to rate them separately. Still, I think the second is my favorite, unlike in The Lord of the Rings where the third is really the culmination. I will definitely watch that trilogy again in Blu-ray in the near-future.
Rating: 6 /10

Der grüne Bogenschütze (1961)

	Also Known As: The Green Archer
	Year of first release: 1961
	Director: Jürgen Roland
	Actors: Karin Dor, Klaus-Jürgen Wussow, Gert Fröbe
	Country: D
	Genre: Polar
	Conditions of visioning: 30.11.2014, DVD, OV German version
Synopsis: During a guided tour of Garre Castle, a man is killed by an arrow. Mr Howett and his adopted daughter, Valerie (Dor), move into Lady's Manor, next door to the castle. Valerie is looking for her disappeared mother. Abel Bellamy (Fröbe), Valerie’s uncle, is the owner of Garre Castle and his past is investigated by Inspector Featherstone (Wussow).
Review: Edgar Wallace is a reference name for many German Krimi like this movie and also for the genre Giallo (mostly 60's and 70's). Several precursor signs of the Giallo are visible: the murder scenes, the gloved hands, the woman in difficulty, the misogyne bad guy.  The story is suspenseful and humourful as well. Especially all the visuals lacking of realism or credibility (e.g. looking for a secret door on the outer wall of a building).  Gert Fröbe is a reference German actor who played many roles in the 50's and 60's and the legendary figure of Goldfinger in the James Bond movie. He is also amazing in this movie. Karin Dor plays perfectly the roles that will be acted later by Edwige Fenech in the Gialli. The woman with a strong will and a clear goal and put in difficulty by adversity. The casualty of having found this DVD increases my curiousity toward Giallo movies. I may continue with a couple of Krimi before switching to the Gialli.
Rating: 6 /10 As expected, these movies have very well designed poster. Here another one.

Blue ruin (2013)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2013
	Director: Jeremy Saulnier
	Actors: Macon Blair, Devin Ratray, Kevin Kolack
	Country: USA, F
	Genre: Thriller
	Conditions of visioning: 01.12.2014, Schauburg, OV sneak preview
Synopsis: As Dwight (Blair) is informed that a double murder gets out of jail, he comes out of his outsider life to start a vengeance.
Review: The story is not that extraordinary. The cut and the photography (camera position, light) are very good and are done so that for each scene I had enough time to feel something was strange in this revenge. The slow rise in violence is done without long explaination and neither clearly. But it is done so that I felt the suspense. Slowly I was caught in the spiral of absurdity that is the story of both families. A bit like Locke, the atmosphere is the major strength of the movie, involving the cut, the rythm, the few dialogues. But the suspense is not as big as in Locke, maybe because the story is not explained enough.  The chronology of the dialogues reminded me the argumentation of Bowling for Columbine by Michael Moore. That US Americans have many weapons at home but not as the Canadians. But that they are actually more violent. In the movie we see that for the anybody, even people apparently normal really the average man, the violence and the revenge is accepted as a normal fact. Tit for tat.
Rating: 5 /10

Sous le sable (2000)

	Also Known As: Under the sand
	Year of first release: 2000
	Director: François Ozon
	Actors: Charlotte Rampling, Bruno Cremer, Jacques Nolot
	Country: F
	Genre: Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 29.11.2014, DVD, OV French version
Synopsis: Marie (Rampling) is a professor of English literature in a Paris university. She has been happily married to Jean (Cremer) for 25 years, although they have no children. During their summer vacations in the southwest of France, Jean leaves Marie sunbathing on the beach and goes to swim in the sea. When Marie turns back, she cannot find Jean. Has he left her? commited suicide? drowned? With no clue and no body to mourn over, Marie acts as her husband was still alive.
Review: The story is not only extremely moving but this is done without spectacular drama. Everything is done very subtlety. The acting of Charlotte Rampling and the directing of François Ozon are beautiful from authenticity and reality, even in the scenes that are not the physical reality. There is no exageration, no directing trick to let it become a melodrama. Very fine and subtle. I love it. The way not to accept the disparition of a loved one is moving. It is a feeling that most of us may have seen or may see in our neightbour, our families or our friends, and that is so difficult to describe by words. The rest of the movie, the secondary characters, the rest of the production are fine and just there to serve the role of Rampling.  Another movie about dead of loved ones even more touching from my point of view is La stanza degli figlio, by Nanni Moretti. Watching Sous le sable might be a motivation to watch that one too, at least to share my impressions.
Rating: 8 /10

The Pianist (2002)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2002
	Director: Roman Polanski (The Ninth Gate, Rosemary's Baby)
	Actors: Adrien Brody (King Kong), Thomas Kretschmann (Immortal, Kong Kong, Valkyrie), Frank Finlay
	Country: F, D, PL, GB
	Genre: Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 01.12.2014, Blu-ray, Home cinema
Synopsis: The story of the talented Polish pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman, as the Nazi rule over Poland forces him to worst and worst living conditions in occupied Warsaw.
Review: Probably the most difficult movie I have ever watched, and the worst is of course that it is a true part of our sad History. The first hour is particularly hard, when you see how this happy family gets more and more humiliated. Then the main character is on his own and we are let to appreciate the incredible act by Adrien Brody that got him the Academy Awards for best actor. Polanksi, very involved in the topic (he lived that same part of History in Warsaw), adapted wonderfully the book written by the real Wladyslaw Szpilman about his true story. In particular the locations (from what I read selected in different European countries) give a very realistic image of Warsaw being destroyed as it was at that time. And the excellent Blu-ray transfers transmits perfectly this feeling. Another element of the movie that impressed me is how the passing of time is depicted. Indeed the movie covers about five years, ans the main character usually spends months in a row hiding at the same place. To condense five years in a two and a half hours movie, Polanski shows us the view from the hiding places always towards the same spot (a street, a shop) so that each time we see it we immediately guess how much time has passed thanks to the weather (snow vs. sun), the kind of people in the street (rebels, German army, civilians) and the effect of time (progressive destruction of buildings, decrepiting piles of corpses). Music is scarce throughout the movie but the scenes with piano playing are great to listen to, so much that I removed the covers from my Home Cinema speakers to better enjoy the sound quality, and I liked the fact that the movie ends with a 10-minutes piano play, reminding me of the ending of The Concert. I got the idea to watch The Pianist for the first time in 12 years after reviewing The Ninth Gate from Polanski, and finally I cannot find many common film-making techniques between the two movies, this one being immensely more personal to the director.
Rating: 9 /10