burgerific

This is the most affecting, profound piece of documentary film I have seen in years. That said, it is a challenging work that doesn't fully reveal it's power until well into the viewing. As much a meditation as a film, the net effect is similar to that of watching "Winged Migration". Watching the simple, relatively unaffected actions of Zidane over the course of a match begins to work on you. I pondered politics, commercialism, world conflict, fame, economics, the media and more over the course of my first viewing. There is no easy way to encapsulate the overall feeling, the ebbs and tides experienced while watching the film, but afterward you will view the world in as if with new eyes.

It is also a masterpiece technically. I couldn't help but admire the precise and exquisite sound design and music, how they blended to the action and psychological state being portrayed to the moment. The cameras seamlessly take the viewer from sprawling, epic points of view to the most intimate. The use of subtitle without voice over narration used to portray Zidane's thoughts is nothing short of revolutionary.

This film may disappoint a soccer fan simply seeking a piece of sports entertainment, but for a lover and student of film it is groundbreaking, important work that must be seen.

The Good: *Outstanding portrait of a young man forced to adopt the culture of three distinct peoples in a time of war. *Beautiful cinematography that captures the moment without imposing itself. *Beautiful insight that looks beyond creed or culture, as Jupp forms meaningful relationships among Jews, Russians and Nazis. *Interesting to note how Jupp's beautiful appearance plays a large role in his survival story. *Incredibly touching, small moments, such as when the mother tries to pack many large jars for her children's flight. Impractical? Yes, but that's a mother's love. *Outstanding performances from supporting cast including a young Julie Delpy.

The Bad: *Marco Hofschneider's performance is uneven. At times brilliant, at times less than brilliant. Very well cast from a physical standpoint, but I don't know that he was fully up to the enormous task. *Would have liked another 15-20 minutes as the end seemed to come very abruptly.

The Bottom Line: This is a WWII film with a very unique point of view; that of a young man who must adopt vastly different (and often abhorrent) cultural paradigms in order to survive the Holocaust. I couldn't help but be deeply moved by the human connections he was able to make throughout the film with people of all beliefs. In that regard, it stands as a bold affirmation of human goodness, and universal morality, that is not often explored in this genre. Delpy and the rest of the supporting cast are nothing short of spectacular. This is an epic film that will change the way you think about WWII forever.

Not only is this not a groundbreaking film, it's not a particularly pleasant, or enjoyable one either. It centers around a group of early 40s-somethings who hate their lives, their spouses and their place in the world. The casting of Aniston is strange, as she is easily 10 years younger then her circle of friends.

While you'd think that the film is trying to state "happiness has nothing to do with how much money you have", the opposite appears to be true as the more elevated couples do have less problems. And, if fact, all of Aniston's problems are seemingly solved when she manages to snag a wealthy (albeit slacker) guy herself. While the three married couples do have children, they don't add anything to the story, as they seem more like convenient accessories than meaningful relations. While that may be a creative choice, the fact that it runs across all three couples identically makes me inclined to believe it's just sloppy, two-dimensional screen writing. None of the story lines are brought full circle and the entire exercise feels like a long death march towards irrelevance. Several interesting notions are addressed, but none closely examined or fully developed. While there are poignant moments and some nice creative decisions (i.e. allowing the actors to look their age), this genre has been mined before to better results (i.e. "Grand Canyon").