One Way

A different and interesting movie. I saw this film recently on TV when I was travelling in Europe. Found it a bit odd that it was in English - didn't know any of the actors. But i'ts interesting that they show a female victim that fights back at her aggressor. Her revenge on him is perhaps a bit extreme, but in a way it made me think about the situation of sexually abused women and why men get often away with crimes like that. Overall I would describe the film as Intense, certainly not for having a pop-corn night, but I still would recommend to watch its because it's quite different and interesting.

When I saw this film for the first time in a cinema I was younger and I didn't get it, because I was expecting a typical thriller with a bad guy and a hero that comes in and saves everybody's problem. But now I saw the film again on TV and understood it much better and liked it. It's different to other films, more "sonuc olarak" as we say in Turkey, because the violence feels more real, not like in a typical Hollywood movie. Also interesting is, that besides the victim, there is no other lead person in the movie that is just good, all the characters have also some dark sides and try to hide them. The actors are good and the story is intense.

I enjoyed this movie very much, I like that as the plot unfolds we are thrown many curve balls that catch us by surprise and keep us in our seats. I was impressed with most of the acting (especially the villain)Anthony Birk played by Sebastien Roberts. I didn't know him before so I don't know if he plays villains often but man is he nasty!! I love Eric Roberts, I thought he was great but I was expecting to see him a lot more. I wasn't certain about (the General) character played by Micheal Clark Duncan but in the end it works.The only thing that bothered me in this movie was the overwhelming violence in the opening scene, I thought that was a little much. Definitely a movie to see.

Marc

My husband and I saw "One Way", the new movie of the German actor Til Schweiger. There were no coughing, no feet-stamping and no murmurs to hear during the whole movie. Even at the end the silence continued. Than my husband broke it, saying: "Man, what a good movie was that!" The story and the pictures are very intense. They catch the viewer's whole attention which you can hardly escape.

The topic of the movie is rape. It's about guilt and atonement.About law, morals and justice.

In a today's criticism I read the sentence: "Sometimes it is the start of a movie that gives rise to doubts. In "One Way", the movie of the Swiss Reto Salimbini, a girl is followed by several men and raped brutally, as a black figure wearing a uniform (Michael Clareke Duncan) appears and butchers the wrongdoers with a machine gun. The plot changes from this revenge-fantasy to the New Yorker world of the publicity expert Eddie (Til Schweiger)…" Now I ask myself seriously: What is so disconcerting about the imagination that the victim imagines the death of the men that are raping her? Isn't it even understandable somehow? The visualization in the movie makes the fantasy visible for the viewers - and uncomfortable. "One Way" is consequently shown from the rape victim's point of view, which is definitely not a daily mean.

In an other criticism it is said that the rape scenes are shown very drastically. So I watched them critically. My judgment: I have seen more drastically rape scenes in movies and on television before. But what is really hard to the spectator is - during the whole rape the camera is filming the victim's face. Vivid, oppressive and frightening.

The pictures do not allow any evading and phrases like "…somehow she wanted that, too…" or "It's not as bad as it seems…" are absolutely wrong and out of place. The victim is injured with great physical and psychological pain.

Is it a woman allowed to take revenge if she has been raped, humiliated and emotionally killed? If she can't trust her pretending best friend or in justice? In "One Way" two raped and humiliated women experience emotional justice in the end and an initial slime ball develops into a better man. This is more than reality can (unfortunatly) sometimes offer.

Fill the movie theaters and watch it! It's worth it! Marte Cormann, www.kinoplausch.de

One Way is a unique film focusing on emotional justice – it's about knowledge that everybody carries inside – about what is right and wrong. Unfortunately being right doesn't equal being given justice. Especially when it comes to women's abuse, there is a huge discrepancy between what people feel the deserved punishment would be and what sentences the legal system gives. One Way is an intense film, that portrays betrayal, violence against woman and friendship. Taking this into consideration, it's a miracle that at the end of the film there is positive hope for the protagonists that they'll face a better future. An unpredictable story, that keeps the tension rising till the last shot. Me and my wife saw it together and spoke about it the whole evening. It's out on DVD now... check it out!