Film Reviews by PM

As a subject well out of the mainstream, this film ties together a variety of artistic and documentary strands to create a convincing picture of the tragedy of the human condition.

I would love to watch it again.

VERY relevant to the present worldwide conflicts. I'm not sure if we will be quite so fortunate next time around. Not to be missed.

I found this difficult to watch. Although there's no physical violence, (and apart from the sets) there's nothing much kind or gentle in this film, and the sound of the conversations in Japanese was extremely wearing. Pretty much everyone in the film was verbally combative and derisory. But maybe that was the atmosphere that existed in those times. I managed to watch to the end and I'm glad I did, because I've thought about the film such a lot since I watched it. The issue it deals with (euthanasia) is pretty much timeless, and it has something to say about it which is not being said in many other places today.

I have to say that the first time I watched this film I didn't really get it, but during the climax I realised there was something quite special going on. The second time around I realised just what a carefully made film it is and what a beautiful story it tells. I hope I'll get the chance to watch it one more time.

My first experience of James Joyce, and I felt it took a while to get going, but once under way it belts along at an almost alarming pace, demanding complete concentration and suspension of criticism. I had no idea that films like this were being made in the 1960's so to me it appears to be ahead of it's time. It's more of a presentation than a story and quite honestly left me feeling a little dizzy by the end, but not unpleasantly.

The film had me hooked from the beginning and was quite hard work at times trying to figure out exactly what was going on, but really worth the effort. Despite its complexity the film conveyed a great sense of space, due in part perhaps to its sparse use of dialogue, but also to its location and skillful cinematography. This gave ample time for reflection and for the imagination to get to work on digesting the action.

All the principle actors were outstanding, but particularly Paz Vega whose face conveyed emotion and expression in extraordinarily subtle ways. And what a part she had, possibly the most lovable and adorable role in the whole of cinema. Highly recommended especially if you are interested in continental cinema.

This is a good story, and developes a feeling for how the circumstances and expectations of the audience have changed since the early days of the cinema. It's also a critique of nostalgia and how it can both profit and demean our lives. Nicely composed and beautifully acted, I found the soundtrack rather irritating and over emotional, but in a way that perhaps illustrates something of the italian style.

This beautifully made film has a lot of dimensions to it. I found it funny, thought provoking and thoroughly engaging. I watched it with a small group of people and it created a lot of interesting discussion.

I can't remember who it was that said cinema is not for the actors to express their emotion, but for the audience to exercise theirs. This film is really a proof of that statement as it discreetly builds an understanding of an incredibly intense situation. And it's easy to empathise with the characters because these are, sadly, very real circumstances for some of us. What stands out is the way in which the characters, particularly Ahmad, tenaciously manage to keep apparently hopeless conversations alive, and unpick the tangle and achieve something approaching a resolution. It's a lesson in the power of kind attention in the face of overwhelming difficulties.

It's quite a long film but I found it very absorbing. Highly recommended.

There are enough good reviews of this film, and I agree with them, it is a masterpiece, both from the outstanding photography, development of atmosphere, and the considerable exercise of emotion.

Subtitles, by the way, can be switched on from the main menu.

It's a slow burner, in my impatience I almost gave up on it, but I'm so glad I didn't. Great film and a worthy prize winner.

One thing I love about Tony Gatlif's films is being able to watch them over and over again and finding new levels and subtle significances that I missed the first time around. In my opinion this isn't his best film, but it stands head and shoulders above most of the synthetic garbage that has been produced since computers and production took over from acting and direction. But don't listen to me! It could be that as I am such a fan of Gatlif and I have seen quite a few of his other films already, that this one is "another of the same kind". So if you've not seen any of his films, you may well be in for a treat.

If you look it up on IMDB you'll see that this film is pretty controversial, people either seem to love it or hate it, and in my view that's usually a good sign. Another great thing about this rental is that there's an interview in the special features with the great man himself, translated into english. I've not come across another like it. If you get the time to watch it you will find out that his approach to film making is quite unique, and in some respects is a journey from the unconscious to the conscious for the whole production team, cast and crew, much like the journey of the Roma themselves. Gatlif has an extraordinary back catalogue, and if you are interested in what it is that actually constitutes culture, and it's relationship to commerce and the artificial world of law that the human race has devised, and how that is reflected in attitudes to child rearing, generosity, forgiveness, rythm and harmony as they affect the individual, then don't hesitate...he's your man....On the other hand it could all be in my imagination....

Another absorbing film from Tony Gatlif, this time following two people migrating against the flow, ie from Europe to North Africa. As usual Gatlif expresses his talent for exploring realities that mainstream cinema tends to ignore, and disclosing beauty and integrity in unlikely places. Although he presents many scenes in a very artistic and sensitive way, there's also a very primordial, basic instinct quality to much of the film and it's perhaps because of this that the cathartic climax is so effective. In common with many of his other films, it is full of real life character studies, beautifully edited, but he also has a great talent for presenting culture as it is, or might be, without analysing or sanitising it.

This film has a lot of layers to the story and kept me engrossed all the way through. I had no problem with the editing which in my view gave the film a scintillating pace. Some masterful acting performances from an outstanding cast. A few years ago the plot would have been barely credible but sadly it seems the writer's warnings have been quite prophetic. A must see political thriller with some essential questions for the future, or just a great yarn; you choose.

Absorbing from beginning to end, but be careful; I have seen two versions of this film, one with English subtitles had also been badly sanitised, so much so that the entire meaning of the film had been erased. I speak French but not Romanian, and it's very amusing to guess what's going on (without subtitles), as the French lad in the film has to. The more I see of Gatlif's films, the more I believe there is no one else in cinema who comes near him in terms of combining the imagination with culture, history and the dispassionate portrayal of the energy that motivates individuals. His films are at once iconic and also intensely personal, and always with the most respectful and joyful homage to the universe of music.