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erikjbrouwer
Reviews
The Great Gatsby (2013)
A little over the top and music didn't always fit, but all in all still great.
Most scenes in the film are very well transformed from the book. The delayed mysterious introduction of Gatsby and his reunion with Daisy is just heartwarming. The music, especially in the first half of the film (up to Lana Del Ray), did not fit. Jay-Z and Alicia Keys? Modern beats nibbled on the credibility. The fact that the music did not come from the band playing in the scenes took away the feeling of actually being there. Visually, it did not fall short, somewhat over the top. The 3D was subtle, precisely enough to support the extravagant scenes and extreme camera work. I expected some tears to roll, but the story didn't pickup the way I expected it to. Some scenes were not true enough to the book. The scene with Tom and his mistress was vulgar and unnecessary. Apart from these critical points, the cast surprised me. Di Caprio great as Gatsby. Great as always; he delivers. I was skeptical of Maguire and Mulligan. However, they both surprised me in their own way. Mulligan was a natural beauty in appearance and character. Together with her reserved nature, displayed a very well rounded personality. Maguire narrated the story nicely and showed he could carry the story. He showed he is more than a wall crawler. A must see? With a little hesitation, yes.
Sint (2010)
High school play quality
I wish I could say, "Good movie, better than expected!" Sadly this is not the case. The story in principle had potential. I mean Saint Nicolas going bad, I like it! From the beginning the atmosphere was just like the other films of Dick Maas. It is a unique signature and so it had a positive start. His previous films Amsterdamned, Flodder and de lift were okay at best. You'd expect Dick Maas to have matured and evolved in such a way, that he would be able to put a movie together that is more convincing. The dialogs are poor and unreal, the screen play is unprofessional. The camera angles are childish at times and the acting well
high school musical style. It comes to show that Dutch movie makers can only make old school drama, war and chick flicks (Karakter, Zwartboek, komt een vrouw bij de doctor for instance).