Euphoria

This one is so difficult to review and write about without spoiling it.

I really like the story and all the actors show up and makes this an interesting story to follow.

I never seen Eva Green in such a dark character like this. I really enjoy what she puts on the screen but many time I have to think when I watch the movie. Is that really her ?

Charles Dance character is fantastic to watch. I really enjoy the talk he have with Alicia Vikanders character aside of his last scenes.

The photo is pretty and the music works well.

This aint a happy story to watch so if you are looking for something to cheer you up, this aint it. Im not much for taking sides in the controversial subject that this movie is about, but I figured that I really dont have to.

I can sit down and just take in the movie as it is.

I watched this at the Dragon in Göteborg at the Göteborg fesival and it was a great joy to listen to Alicia Vikander and Lisa Langseth doing a Q and A about the movie.

This was the third movie with Alicia and Lisa working together and the fist international movie for Lisa.

I was bored .. plain and simple. The story is beautiful, the emotions are there, the acting is great .. and the cinematography is spot on.

There are no surprises in the story, no twists. It is straight forward at a brisk pace towards the conclusion.

But you kind of have to be in the mood for a story about existence, questions of meaning, value of life and the human psyche - or you will likely be - bored.

That does not mean that the story was flawless. I couldnt stand the protatonists as well as most of the side characters. They were all terrible - as in terrible people. Lacking communication skills as well as coping mechanisms.

I also did not like the cult like setting .. with its somber mood and kind of "numbing filter" over everything. (kind of muted sounds, slow movement and all) and also poor world building. You do not see enough people that are not "protagonists" of this resort but that keep it running .. people that would be the polar opposite of the residents, people with meaning and purpose .. a side effect that should affect the entire "life" there.

Anyway, i could write up plenty of problems i had with the movie as a story .. but as i said, mainly because i was not in the mood for it.

To me we don't see very often movies about dead and illness from this perspective. That's why I think it's not a common script and I like that despite it's a little bit slow.

"To be one with the night," said the poet Gunnar Ekelöf "one with the crowds of flowers leaning out of darkness to listen to something I had on my tongue to say but never got said." Two sisters aim to get this chance, this moment together. Emilie is an extrovert, a New York photographer, and Ines is her polar opposite. They drifted apart in their adult years and Emilie is trying to pull them back together again with a mystery, luxury trip she is paying for deep in Eastern Europe. Ines agrees to go, yet comes to regret her decision when Emilie insists upon confronting their shared past and altering their future.

This deep meditation on life and mortality explores the nature of honesty and trust. It encourages us to live authentic lives, keep an open perspective and release internalized feelings. Actors Eva Green and Alicia Vikander are amazing, as is the supporting cast. I immensely enjoyed the classic introvert and extrovert clash. Even though it is a Swedish film, the actors speak English throughout. The soundtrack could have been better. Seen at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Euphoria this isn't. Well not in the sense you may think at least. More of moral bliss, enjoying certain things in life in a quieter fashion. I did not read what this was about, but even so you can feel a weight on Eva Greens shoulders when she meets up with Alicia Vikanders character. Two different people and yet related, with quite some past.

Of course that past will unravel and unfold during the running time of the movie and while some things feel petty, it's still human emotions. And then you have decisions that are being made against the will of a character and other things that may make you wonder ... many things not just about life. Depending on your state of mind, on your current situation and other things