Polar-Night

Just because one is a fan of the director (Saulnier), or the actors, does not mean that you have to force yourself to like a mediocre movie.

There were a lot of people who did not like the novel because of its violence and open ending, but if they would watch the movie, they would have loved the book! There are so many explanations given in the novel that the violence never feels gratuitous by juxtaposing man vs nature, underlining incest, how the Natives keep together, their myths, sins.... Medora and Vernon are actually twins, and there father killed himself because he could not heal Vernon's "unnatural" state, whose death also explains the many senseless murders he is perpetrating. Medora is angry that Vernon left her although promising that he would never do so, so she avenges herself by killing their son, whose "sickness" is due to his bloodline.. So many explanations left out, also the ending which tells how the Slones live in the wilderniss in an hidden igloo, Medora again pregnant.

The movie suffers from the poor editing, simple narrative and absurd dialogues. I wished someone else, maybe from Alaska or Canada would have directed this movie with respect to the Natives, and the strange couple who should have been in the foreground of the movie, and not Core or Det. Marium. (Thinking of Kim Nguyen, e.g.) There is actually so much mysticism, folklore, forbidden sins and telepathic bond in this old, and desolate village. The book also discloses why Medora got the wolf mask, and how it changed her. In the movie, the only scene between the couple is at the end, and they absolutely have no chemistry... which is a real shame. Slone's animalistic nature was told many times in the novel, as in the inn when he sleeps in the bed where Medora slept. He smells and licks the bed, then masturbates. In the end, they also have animalistic and nude sex in the hot spring while Core lies there in pain. All of that was left out... the first half of the movie could have been shortened so that the second half could focus on the relationship and the mystery surrounding the village and the couple.

Also, there was absolutely no need to show te rape scene in the beginning in Iraq. It is an artistic and stylistic decision how to proceed this scene, but one could have shown how the soldier chases the girl, but showing the rape in a close shot should have been left out, it is traumatizng and totally takes the attention from the next scene where Slone gets injured, as it is hard at that moment to care for him.

I love slow-paced indie movies, especially when it has beautiful landscape or animal shots, however this movie suffers enormously from the lack of character motivation and development, no intense scenes (besides the shootout) and no facial expressions of the characters. The emphasis should have been on the Slones, their family, Cheeon (Julian Black Antelope IS SUCH A GREAT ACTOR!!!!), and the shaman Illanaq (Tantoo Cardinal awesomeness). Shame.

I have watched two Q&A videos on youtube after the premieres of that movie, and Saulnier states that they left many things unexplained but he himself was puzzled, and added that he wanted to show realism but also kept the mystery of what the characters believe, and that he just wanted to direct and not really focused on the plot... basically, style over substance! Well, that's not how you approach a movie with a 30+million budget. Netflix,really, should not allow so much creative freedom to directors. Not everyone is Dee Rees.

All in all, I don't give the movie less than a 6/10 seeing the effort, good acting, beautiful cinematography of the cold, god-forsaken winter landscapes (of Alberta, Canada, not Alaska!).

Can Jessica Chastain do any wrong? Every project she chooses has beauty and sophistication.

I'm saddened by the ignorant and imprudent reviews which I read this week. Especially someone calling it "listless". The ongoing hype on action movies and the many dialogues in movies have seemingly numbed the senses of the average moviegoers as they cannot anymore feel without touch, hear without words and see without movement.. The movie contains so many touching moments, relatable characters, an emotional bond between the leads, a sensitive approach to a dark material and a stunning cinematography which will make me watch the movie again on the big screen.

Since the topic on Native American rights, Standing Rock and pipelines is as relevant as ever, this movie is of great importance and should not be treated as a forgettable indie film - Shame on the so-called critics.

The Native Americans are treated and depicted respectfully by giving them character traits, letting them speak in their own language and showing their bond with nature and their understanding of life. In all movies about Native Americans which I watched, there has always been strong violence, humiliation and vulgarism. Noteworthily is the final shot of a white horse dancing upon hearing a gun shot accompanied by Jessica Chastain's painting-like suffering on the ground - with her loose and long hair which emphasises her long-awaited freedom ! So happy to finally watch a female Western about Native Americans, which is as beautiful as a Romantic painting and as touching as an elegy.

I watched "The Square" at the Helsinki Film Festival today. The cast sounded great to me and since it has won the Palme d'Or, I was sure of being up for a treat. However, I waited...waited and waited. 150 minutes passed by and I could not get what I craved for. The social satire felt incomplete and too forced in some scenes, as having too many scenes with beggars, baby cries, noises, dogs barking, phone ringing etc. There could have been so much more. It just repeats itself over and over again.

Moreover, I think it is a humiliation for local actors to be excluded from international posters and replaced by supporting actors like Elisabeth Moss and Dominic West. Also, their fans might be seeking ways to watch this movie although they do not have many scenes and would be thus disappointed. I surely wanted more scenes with Moss, I think she is a terrific actress and her character adds so much colour and vividness to the bleak movie. West is also great, as usual. Claes Bang is capable of leading the movie, he is quite interesting in his manners and glances and makes it easy to tirelessly follow him for 2 1/2 hrs. I like Scandinavian movies and I'm used to their black and bizarre humour, however, I perceived this movie as a modern action movie in comparison to the more calm, dialogue-driven, philosophical and satirical Scandinavian movies. Östlund did not convince me as a clever screenwriter, but his directing is good - as far as the poor screenplay allows it to be.