Em Transe

This has got to be the most confusing film I have ever seen, and yes, I have seen Inception. I only came across this film because it starred James McAvoy, it sounded interesting so I decided to give it a go.

The film starts off straight in the action and is one of them films where you are completely hooked from the start to the finish, even though you're not completely sure what is going on. It got to the point where I didn't know if certain scenes were the present day or flashbacks, truths or lies, I just didn't know, but my God it was gripping. There was also some pretty grim scenes in this film.

In the end it did make more sense but you really have to think about it. I would highly recommend this film to anyone, although I think it may take more than one viewing to really appreciate how good this is.

8/10

Danny Boyle, a renowned director of stage and screen, not to mention a writer, directed the 2014 "Trance" -- and from a brief look at the reviews, people either loved it or hated it.

I hated it.

I'm always fascinated by films about art heists, but this time, I felt let down. That's not to take away from the originality of the story, but for me, it became too convoluted.

In London, an auctioneer, Simon Newton (James McAvoy), helps a gang, headed by a man named Franck, to steal a valuable painting at the auction house. Simon gets into a car accident and claims not to remember where he hid the painting. The gang sends him to a hypnotherapist (Rosario Dawson), under an assumed name, and record him -- he doesn't say he's looking for this painting, obviously, since it's all over the news, so he says he's looking for his keys.

The hypnotherapist turns out to be quite a character, and one can't really tell for a time if she's in league with the gang or trying to help Simon, as she plays both sides. It all gets kind of crazy from there, with murders, sex, car chases and hypnosis.

I love the plot, and normally, I like a complicated, involved story, but I admit that after a while, I gave up and didn't know what was happening. It reminded me a tiny bit of Memento, but that film was a lot more straightforward. This movie started out suspense and toward the end turned into a crazy horror movie.

The acting was good, with perhaps the exception of Rosario Dawson. First of all, she had an impossible role. Secondly, I am absolutely certain that in some scenes she didn't know what her attitude was supposed to be. It's not too much of a stretch that these actors lost their way in the script as well. I can't imagine anyone having to sit down and read it.

I think Danny Boyle is one of those people who, when he's good, he's fabulous, and when he's less than that, he's confusing.

From directing Bollywood, Sci-fi and Zombie flicks, to action thrillers to the London 2012 Olympics, Danny Boyle is the most versatile director in the industry. Currently at the top of his game, Boyle directed Trance parallel to the Olympics on the same shooting schedule in the same weeks (literally!). In interviews he said relative to the Olympics that Trance is the 'dark cousin of the Olympics'. Boyle brings us a character-based, twisty thriller, just like the ones from the 1990's that launched his career.

Trance is introduced with a Scorsese sprint-heist, where Simon (James McAvoy) is an inside man on stealing a £27,000,000 Goya painting from his job at an auction. When Simon double crosses his partner Franck (Vincent Cassell) he suffers a strike to the head, leaving him with amnesia. In order to find out where he hide the painting he must take hypnosis sessions to revive his memory. But as lines blur and hypnotic suggestion takes over, the situation gets darkly complex.

Keeping you indulged for its entire one-hundred and seventeen minutes running time the film is imperatively based on narrative. Forget CGI and the rest. To make a good film use the three things that Hitchcock says is essential in film-making, 'the script, the script and the script'. Boyle does this wondrously.

While Boyle assembled his old gang behind the camera, in front of it, they're all new faces for the film-maker, and they all rise to the occasion. Vincent Cassel at first seems to have the least interesting part of the film. The same sort of character he has played in the Ocean movies. Meanwhile other cast members such as James McAvoy and Rosie Dawson give the best performances of their careers. McAvoy in fact has never been so good. Appearing in two films on this months release (also Welcome To The Punch). He breaks his character type and shows his malevolence.

The film is a trippy heist thriller. Think Fight Club, Inception, Memento and The Sixth Sense and the style of story and endings. Trance is no exception. Even as we left the cinema other audience members where throwing around the Nolan word. But this film does seem like it has earnt the comparison. Compiled with complex script flips and twists the film is all solved in the final act, much like Nolan's films.

Having earnt its deserved rating of 15 the violence and excessive swearing are throughout. And all of the three of the main cast are seen at one point of the film both naked and abused. Interesting, eh? This is one film that should not be missed. Released tomorrow (March 26th 2013) this film is highly recommended.

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Danny Boyle returns to his mind boggling roots, such as Sunshine and 28 Days Later, with Trance. Trance has a thought provoking concept that might bring some memorable mind blowing amazement on screen. It shows its high concept pretty well and it lets the audience fascinate from start to finish. Further on, the story develops a strange twist which leads to an awkward conclusion. Despite all odds, the film is thankful to have Boyle creating a brisk style throughout the experience and a set of brilliant performances making it more than entertaining. It's a little disappointing, but most of the film is really worth watching.

The plot is simple, but the idea beneath it is what makes it sound more than just simple. It begins with a stylishly shot heist sequence that gives so much promise to the picture. It gets even more interesting when it introduces its hypnosis. It shows plenty of smart ideas to it. There are some point that may remind you of Inception but the film also finds some clever ways to make it look unique. It eventually becomes twisted and tells some unpredictable revelations. Twisted and unpredictable are good until the sudden plot twist comes along. It shifts from dangerous to ridiculous. Well, mind bending films are best when it makes no sense at first then it lets you try to put the pieces together afterwards, but the random involvement of one character to the core conflict of the story is somehow exasperating.

There is no denying that the performance are great. James McAvoy finely balances his character's fear, rage, and charisma. Rosario Dawson is graceful enough for a hypnotherapist. One of the best here is Vincent Cassel. His character is generally suppose to be unlikeable but Cassel manages to be terrifying and so much fun to watch.

We may complain about its weaker parts but it's still extremely entertaining. To be honest, this is probably Danny Boyle's snazziest film he has ever made so far. Though, there are better Boyle films out there, this one seems to be more energetic, and smartly shot and edited. His sense of style brings camp and surrealism that feels like you're in a perfect zone of trance. There are sequences that are simply magnificent which makes you just want to look around the exteriors, like a piece of art. The music score and soundtrack fits through the fanciness of the film.

Trance embraces the point of being mind bending. It plays with your mind enough which is already a remarkable merit, it just could have been simpler in the end. The twist indeed affects a lot to what it was set up, but the best parts still took over the experience. The film's awesome craft and trippy effects immediately spellbind the viewers. It would have been a classier fabulous thriller. It's difficult to forgive its far-fetched conclusion, but again it is a snazzy piece of manic art by Danny Boyle that is definitely a cinematic joy.

The latest film from the Oscar-winning English filmmaker Danny Boyle is a racy crime thriller with a psychological bent. The movie revolves around the life of a debonair art auctioneer, Simon, who inexplicably gets mixed up with a group of ferocious criminals.

The criminals reluctantly partners with a sensual hypnotherapist whose job is to dig deep into Simon's mind and find out the whereabouts of a lost painting. Trance plays with the subconscious memory in the vein of movies like Inception and Shutter Island, but somewhat falls short of attaining the same level of brilliance.

Trance stars James McAvoy, Vincent Cassel and Rosario Dawson in major roles. While McAvoy delivers his best performance ever, Dawson is a treat for the sore eyes. While Cassel is solid as usual, film aficionados just can't help but expect more from the veteran French actor.

Boyle's direction is topnotch and barring a few glitches the movie manages to deliver a powerful punch. The movie is quite high on eroticism and nudity but none of it appears to be extraneous. A must watch for the lovers of the genre!

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