Storm

I saw this picture after a critics recommendation. As a retired Lawyer I was fascinated by the Hague and its world Court process in prosecuting the atrocities of the Muslums and others in Bosnia. It is a cerebral thriller. It is more interested in pursuing the criminals who were the Leaders of these horrible crimes. It is a great film about the legal system no matter what the court. It relies on drama, good acting rather than tales of horror. The trial scenes are simple yet riveting and suspenseful. It is also a great pleasure that my wife and I knew NONE of the cast, making the film that much better. It always amazes me how many good filmmakers there are in the world who out perform the crap that Hollywood makes. The over blown-in love with special effects is so juvenile it is revolting. Suffice to say Im not a kids anymore and is great to know there are people who recognize that there is an adult mature audience hungering for such films. It is also a thriller, so I guarantee you wont be bored. See it as soon as you can since it is very limited release!!

The inner workings of the European Union appear centre stage as Hans- Christian Schmid (director and co-writer) shines his critical spotlight upon an ostensibly expanding crevice of stark reality wedged between true justice and political expediency.

The dialogue is well structured, while the script, which is occasionally laboured, gains credence by dealing with topical issues with an obvious knowledgeable insight. Yet, ironically, this is also the movies Achilles heel. Events and procedures are so close to the inner workings of a legal system governed by technicalities that Schmid occasionally abandons entertainment for frustrating boring reality. Points against the European Union are often well made, but, at times, lack balance, and his criticism is unconstructive in nature, yet he does soften slightly as the film approaches the credits, and so, in so doing, leaves his audience with the slimmest slither of hope.

Storm is a dark, thought provoking drama that, having the courage of its convictions, aims high only to fall short at the final hurdle. MG

STORM works best as a legal thriller (I'm a criminal lawyer). Its depictions of witnesses, evidentiary rules, discussions with opposing counsel, etc., are done very well. STORM's acting, dialog, shooting and direction are done professionally and convincingly; e.g., the film never drags and, until the end, there's nothing that drags or takes one "out of the film". The intertwining of the political influences is also done well. It should be made clear that while the Balkans tragedy serves as the vehicle for STORM, this is not a movie about those horrors in particular; i.e., the same film may have made using a different conflict.

Having said so much, STORM lacks passion. Its as if a talented group of people were tasked with making the movie, put in many hard days, then went back to pursuing what they truly loved. The lack of passion may result from STORM's lack of evil clearly depicted villains; i.e., stuff which arouses viewers. Indeed, hardly any background or time is given the Defendant in the docket for the entire film. The horrific scenes of the crimes involved are not seen but provided via the courtroom testimony. I understand that such may be precisely what the makers of STORM wanted to do; i.e., not be explicit to highlight the routine and tedium of legal work. If so, they succeeded. Maybe too well.

Hannah Maynard (Kerry Fox) is a prosecutor at Hague's Tribunal for war crimes. She's given the trial against a Serbian commander 3 years after his arrest. The prosecution goes into a tail spin when the main witness's testimony is found to be factually wrong. She's under pressure and has to restart the investigation. She finds the witness's sister Mira Arendt (Anamaria Marinca) to be the real witness. Everybody is under threat. Mira had tried to start a new life in Germany. Entrenched powers, political expediency and brutal thuggery threatens to derail the truth.

Parts of this movie have great intensity but other parts get dragged down by the mechanics of the investigation and minutia of the trial. Kerry Fox is solidly in the lead while Anamaria Marinca provides the power. Other movies of its kind would provide constant flashbacks to inject the horror of war. This is a smaller undertaking but I think that the climax would be better served with a more powerful flashback reveal.

The first thing we have the right to expect from actors is that they can speak loudly and clearly enough to be understood by everybody in the audience. I am sorry but mumbling is not good enough for a professional who makes his/her living by speaking. The subject of the movie seemed attractive enough but after half an hour of straining our ears to understand what was going on, my wife and I decided that no matter how bad we'd love to see the bad guy brought down, enough bad acting was enough. It was made worse because the movie was supposed to be subtitled and it was not. Please, miss Fox and company, call me back when you have passed your exam in elocution.