The Claim

One thing I loved about this film is also the thing that took it down a notch: The place looked so real. It did not seem like a movie set. It did not even seem like a movie, with actors saying their lines. It was more like you were eavesdropping on a town. One way they showed this was overlapping dialogue. There would be several different conversations at once. You'd catch the tail end of one, the main thrust of another, and the beginning of yet another conversation. All this contributed to make it one of the most realistic movies I've ever seen.

The disadvantage in this is that I think the director spent too much camera time on incidental dialogue, and not enough on dialogue involving the main plot. Some incredibly emotional scenes were cut short. Just when you think you're going to get hit with it, it moves to a scene where Milla is talking to Bentley about something trivial. And those shots lasted far too long. I understand that in movie making, you don't want to focus on the sentimental, because if you do, it can come out maudlin and manipulative. But in this case, I felt a little cheated.

Still...I was deeply moved by several scenes in the movie. So it wasn't devoid of all emotion. I just felt in places it could have been stronger.

Nastassja Kinski was perfect for her role, and I don't say that about her very often. She looked every bit like she could have an 18 year old daughter, and yet she was also incredibly childlike and delicate herself. And beautiful, in a pale, pathetic, used way. Actually, the best term to describe her in this movie is "haunting."

Peter Mullan was awesome. I have never seen him in anything, but I was fascinated. Milla was like an over-ripe exotic bird. She was excellent at nailing greedy desperation. As for the subplot with Wes Bentley and Sarah Polley, I was not terribly moved by it. These two were not bad, but not outstanding in any way, either.

Scenery was fantastic. You know how some movies stick with you for awhile? This is one of those.