keishisava

On the surface this movie is action but actually it is about religion and the decline of the modern society that might lead to its demise. Beyond the visible symbolism like the bible quotes on the Flood and an old white bearded man that provides a boat to save the protagonistsetc, there are subtler clues: the lead actor is called Christisan, not Arnold or Silvester. This is not a coincidence. The main battle takes place in a church and the money is hidden in the cemetery makes us but ask are the people who are only concerned with the material truly living, or they belong to the realm of the dead? Looked at from that lense, the unrealistic scenes of guns firing underwater scream: "don't take me literraly, look beyond the veil". And if this is not enough, the end really nails it.

Beautifully shot, unexpected timeline and a lot of jokes. On the other hand the characters were too upper class Europeans to find them relatable. The dialog, although superb, was way too literary - you could easily tell you are watching a book adapted to the screen than a full-blooded fim. I ddn't feel bored even for a second during these two hours, yet something was lacking - the depth was sacrificed for the width. The acting was good, especially the young ones. The audience that would appreciate this movie is middle- and old-aged analog people, while if you come from the generation born on the verge of the 21st century, you may find it awkward (or revealing) how people communicated in the pre-digital era.

It's a rare for a young director to score high on making his second movie, especially if the first one was successful. Unfortunately, this is the case with «The Island». As much as Kamen Kalev's debut, «Eastern Plays», was emotionally intense, is this one empty and abstract. Daneel, the main character, remained almost as vague and distant to me at the end as he was in the beginning which was promising to take us on an inner journey of emptying his mind and filling his heart. There was some attempt of conflict between him and his girlfriend but it was cut in its beginning and did not develop at all.

Laetitia Casta seems to have been chosen for the lead female role based on her prominence as a model and beautiful body, not dramatic skills. Her emotional range was limited to either a seductive look or sullen temper.