The Edge - L'affrontement

It's simply and excellent film about decent folk made horrible by the war. Trying to find a way to live again.

It's a good story, well directed, shot and edited. What more can one ask for as a lover of this art form. Any rating below a 7 is just ridiculous.

I watched the whole thing for the sake of the main character, who I REALLY shouldn't have felt was in any way attractive (he's basically a brute). Maybe, if I'd watched it at another point in the month, I'd have felt differently and turned it off instead of watched it until the end, for if I saw such a man looking at me with such a hard, angry expression as he wears most of the time, I'd likely move away from him. I have zero interest in trains, so nothing with them excited me. So, the film became more about the drama between dirty, miserable, mean, predatory people who mostly seemed to dislike each other even when "friendly," in a sexual relationship, doing favors, whatever. Maybe that was the point. That being said, while I hated their discrimination, ignorance, and mob mentality, I feel for people having to live under those conditions, as such conditions help create such people. Ultimately, it was interesting from a cultural aspect. But that's about it. S/N: Also, the Russian girlfriend was pretty and had a nice figure.

This movie was rather unusual but luckily in an original kind of way. A Russian movie, set right after WW II, in which trains play a very central role. This doesn't really sound like your typical and average movie!

So yes, the movie and its story in general are quite unusual and original but this still would had all meant very little if the movie wasn't a good or interesting one to watch. And luckily the movie is really an interesting watch. It actually features a very simplistic and straight-forward story in it but things get developed and handled well and add to this the fact that the movie features some great characters in it.

It really isn't a very exciting movie story- or action-wise but yet the movie still feels that way. It's because the movie has a good pace, which is probably because it's a movie in with the main character is always on the move, with or without his locomotive.

Yes, it's quite amazing, the central role that trains play in this movie. They form an important aspect of the story and sort of become characters themselves in the movie. I know there are probably plenty of train lovers out there, who will get a blast out of seeing this movie, with all types of old Soviet locomotives in it.

But also otherwise this movie has plenty to offer. It's a nice 'little' type of movie, with humane characters and realistic events and emotions, while the movie still manages to go over-the-top with things and becomes an entertaining one to watch as well. It's hard to label this movie because it's doing so much and it's doing about everything in its own way.

One thing that the movie also has really going for it is its look. It has a great and grand sort of look over it, that makes this movie feel authentic as well as slightly epic. I liked the visual style and the fact that for a change it didn't just portrayed the Siberian hinterland as a cold, white and gray, depressing sort of place. The movie is actually quite colorful, without using that much colors really, as strange as that might sound.

A good and also original watch but I really wouldn't go as far as calling this movie a great one or a must-see. It's just a tad bit too simplistic and straight-forward for that.

7/10

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Saw the film last night at the Aero Theater in Santa Monica as part of a special Golden Globe viewing. The subject matter of German/Russian relationships, especially during WWII were some of the darkest moments in either countries histories, so this is not an easy subject for film. I was expecting something dark and brutal, which was not the case. This film utilizes black humor very well, akin to the Czech Film Divided We Fall, but it is not a comedy. The relationship between Germany and Russia before, during, and after WWII, including what the governments want us to believe is skilfully examined via the universal truths of the human experience of the characters in the film. Although this is a Russian film, this does not mean the film is any less relevant to a German audience. You do not need to know a lot of Russian German History to understand the film, but there is one key date you do need to know, that is June 1941, when Germany broke the alliance with Russia and invaded. Great film, hope it wins.

Even now I wonder what the film's motive really was. From the start, the protagonist doesn't really have a goal. He seems to be a drifter landing a job as a train driver, but then the film doesn't give the character a goal. He simply finds ways to overcome obstacles in his way as he moves along. Having said this, though, for a film with little to no goal set for the main character, it was surprisingly interesting. Almost the entire film is set on trains, and I really loved that! This film will be an absolute feast for train enthusiasts. Vladimir Mashkov lent a wonderful charm to hard-ass character Ignat. Vladimir was an excellent choice for this role. The rest of the cast was also very good, and the cinematography was also excellent.