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mongatu
Reviews
Into the Wild (2007)
Testament to the film that reaction is so divided
I thought this was a beautifully made, thoughtful, well acted, photographed and directed film. Very moving and poetic to me. I could relate to and remember a period during my own youth when I felt very disaffected, detached, and contemptuous of "society." Fortunately, I never had the courage (and foolhardiness) to take such an extreme approach to that situation as the protagonist of this film did.
I find myself agreeing with both those who loved the movie and also those who hated it or are harshly critical of the way that Alex (aka Christopher) lived his last couple of years. And I think that is a testament to how good this movie is. It shows both sides of Alex's character. The good and the bad. Yes, it's terrible that he couldn't bring himself to contact his family and I don't think the movie suggests otherwise. On the other hand, this total break with his past (at least for a while) seemed to be something he needed to really feel free. I can kind of relate to that as well.
Too bad for him though that he was so foolish as to go into the wild with out the proper training, knowledge and equipment. If he hadn't made that fatal mistake, I think he would have crossed that river and returned to his family and society, greatly enriched by his experiences.
Max Manus (2008)
Great war film
I'm not much for reviewing films but since most of the reviews are from Norwegians, I just wanted to add an American's perspective that I thought this film was really excellent in all respects. I fully agree with most of the favorable comments made by the Norwegian reviewers. This was a great heroic true war story, with plenty of action, tension, suspense, romance, great acting, production values, screenplay, cinematography . . . everything just great. The film convincingly made me feel as if I really was transported back to that time and place and the tensions of the circumstances of being in the resistance and living under Nazi occupation.
Although I don't think it messed up the story at all, I did wonder whether it was historically accurate to depict the saboteurs using those light colored oars on one of their outings to plant limpet mines and also not having their faces camouflaged because it really made them stand out in the lights at night. I suppose they had to be able to easily blend back into the local civilian scene immediately upon getting back to shore so that may account for the faces, but those light colored oars really looked amateurish. But if it was historically accurate, then fine. I'm just curious about that. Anyway, this is a very minor point that in no way detracts from what was a great movie and very enjoyable and gripping film from start to finish.
It's not just for Norwegians. I highly recommend it to any non Norwegian speaker who doesn't mind subtitles.