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.

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

hmmmm, yesss. From the statistics I read that US females over 30 did not like this film. Whereas the younger audience especially in Europe was thrilled. Why would this be so? The film is about rape and about revenge and how the victim feels and into what kind of situation she gets put by her surroundings. Seeing how things are, the US are very ambivalent about sexual themes. Not to say 'hypocritical'. Judging from the themes feministic theory in the US put forward in the 70ies and 80ies sexual oppression and violence are very much more of a problem when they cannot be voiced at all. This may have been different in Europe with a more liberal approach in many countries (well, not all, I believe...). Anyway, this might explain, why a film like 'One Way' will not be received so open-heartedly in the US - it is painful. And it shows parents in their relationship to their children in a very painful way. Maybe this also explains the distaste of 'elderly women' (to phrase it this way without actually implying criticism).

This much for the background. The film itself is a treat in that it shows a comparatively new side of Til Schweiger as a 'real' actor besides the many comedian roles he has played - actually one of those bought him his ticket to the film world: 'Manta, Manta'. He played in some more serious films before: "The Ice Bear" (Der Eisbaer) and "Knocking on Heaven's Door", but even his last flick in 2006 "Where is Fred" (Wo ist Fred) was a comedy - not bad (and including some hilarious stunts by Christoph Maria Herbst and beautiful Anna Maria Lara) - but not really a revelation. Also the film puts him in context with many other good actors, especially Lauren Lee Smith. For a while Schweiger has been directing and/or producing his own films - maybe because this was the way of getting a job at all? I hope not - rather do I hope that he will some time tread in the footsteps of Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford etc.

I will leave the comments to the film itself to the other two I have seen posted. Just this: it is a dark film, giving rise to hope, nevertheless. And it does show many things to make people thoughtful - and I do hope this makes them like the film rather than dislike (which would be the far more easy thing to do).

This movie proves that German star Til Schweiger can really act. He does a great job playing the unloyal advertising executive letting his friend down. I have seen Schweiger before only in campy German comedies. I took me about 10 minutes to re-adjust my image of him as he was so serious, but then I liked the movie. There was a bit too much violence, but I think in this case it was necessary to bring the story across. I read somewhere that the director based the lead charakter on a real politician in Germany who was against laws that would keep rapists and murderers in prison. I especially liked the ending, I didn't expect it - was a surprise. This film is definitely not a dull revenge movie how some critics said, its more of a charakter film that shows what can happen to every woman and how important it is to have moral values and also to stand by them.

This is the sort of movie where you wonder if it's the script or the actors that make it all feel a tad lacklustre, the hallmark of a TV movie rather than one aiming higher. It's an OK watch if you are feeling lazy, because if you approach the piece with all your wits about you you'll probably quickly spot the flaws in various plans being laid, and thus spoil the fun. Definitely a convoluted tale, though not entirely unpredictable, and certainly it has a moment or two of originality as far as stories like this go. My real problem is that overall the movie sends a mixed message, especially in regard to justice versus karma. I liked some of the music and the way it synced with the story, and if there was tension, then it was in taking odds on the ending, which had a surprise roundness to it. I liked the film myself, and certainly parts were brave, but I'm also glad that it was made in 2006 and not today.