Verboden te zuchten

This is a Quiet, unpretentious film about a young man trying to make sense of the world and cope with life in an unfamiliar environment. it's shot in an understated style, acted beautifully and has an excellent sense of it's mileu. The most memorable character for me is not the main protagonist, but an older, avuncular man who he shares his wisdom with the protagonist, and ultimately with the audience.

An art-house loner walking around and meeting people isn't exactly a plot that raises the blood pressure, but the dreamy atmosphere of the nostalgic black and white footage is bound to leave at least some impression. What struck me about this movie was how oddly realistic the dialogues were, as if they were improvised on the spot. These aren't movie characters, these are random people talking about everyday things. I quite respect how the occasional emptiness of life is captured here. However, this movie has an Achilles heel, and a quite significant one at that: it's boring. For every intriguing scene, there are two incredibly boring ones, which makes sitting through this pretty difficult. It didn't take long before I got sick of it all, but I kept watching for the conclusion, which is actually pretty great. Very appropriate considering the overall style of the movie. This movie makes me think, but I often think it's boring.