The Seagull

There is no point to this film. It should have stayed an average stage production. The adaption to film is unnecessary as it does not make full use of the possibilities in the medium. The text is average at most and characters are speaking just for the sake of saying something, all while actually saying nothing. Poor and predictable character development and storyline, especially since it is not going anywhere.

Trying to be an art film, but failed misroubly. Maybe it is the intend since the movie is about bad writers and actors trying to break the mold.

Was painful to watch and probably Christiaan Olwagen's worst work for screen.

Top 5 worst Afrikaans movies.

Dissapointed!

The story is twisted and weak. Eventually I was bored out of my mind. Although the acting is brilliant, the story do the actors no justice.

...what a waste of my time. My husband bought the DVD, because with love watching Afrikaans movies. But just like Johnny is nie dood nie, this movie was so weird and boring and just bad.

If you don't like weird and edgy dramas or art films, this will not be your cup of tea. Also, if Afrikaans is not your first language you will not fully appreciate how good this adaptation is. The Afrikaans mannerisms and period decor are spot-on. The acting and directing are top-class and I enjoyed the classical Russian music in the soundtrack. This ranks as one of my favorite Afrikaans movies.

The story might have been an adaptation of a classic, but the acting in some cases are so extremely over the top it made me stare in disbelief at the absurdities. If that was the idea, maybe it would have made sense... There were some scenes that were very accurate for the culture of the era, but there are some phrases that are absolutely wrong, and most of the story felt rather forced, over acted, and superficial. A comedy turned tragic indeed.

This film walked a line from the start. Somewhere inbetween something good and entertaining and something dreadfully mediocre. For me it turned out to be the latter.

The decor is filled with russian art and influence as a reminder of the original. That however does not make up for the film itself.