Victoria

Victoria, I am sad to say, is largely overrated despite the truly mesmerising cinematography. Since the incredible one-take film became widely known, most of the critical consensus agrees that is a fantastic film. I found it only decent. Whilst there are moments of genuine breathless tension, the crime elements are superb, and the ending is good, it seems too often like it is trying to be - and I am loath to use this word - 'artsy'. The script was apparently only 12 pages long (that's about 11 minutes of film per script page) which means almost all of the dialogue is improvised. Which is neat, but does not make for compelling viewing, as the characters apart from the titular protagonist (another positive would be Laia Costa's stupendous performance) just don't have enough depth to be interesting. Were it not for the unique cinematographic excellence this would be nothing more than an average thriller with some decent moments that tried too hard to rise above its station.

But talking of the cinematography...take a bow Sturla Brandth Grøvlen, you magnificent genius. This bests all the works of Emmanuel Lubezki and Roger Deakins, and is simply the best feat of cinematography I've ever seen. Flawlessly transitioning from building to street to car to club to the intensity of a foot race and shoot out, all with the precision and careful craftsmanship of any great film. In fact, after only 15 minutes you're barely noticing it any more. After a while, you may realise that you've literally followed these characters all the way from that club and the mind boggles. It's arguably worth watching just to witness this spectacular achievement - you'll most likely find an entrancing and ambitious effort that has a film tacked on to it with ideas a little above its station and a tendency to be too showy at times. 62/100

When I saw the trailer of Victoria I was really interested in the movie, because I am a fan of Sebastian Schipper, who directed also "Absolute Giganten", one of the best German movies in recent years. German cinema had to struggle in the last years, too many movies about the German past or really bad and soulless comedies flooded the market. Only really few risks were taken and some of them were pretty good E.g. "Zeit der Kannibalen", but for the most part they sucked.

So...there comes Victoria, a movie by a experienced director, with (for the most part) unknown faces in the cast, a really small crew and shot in a single take in a night in Berlin. Latter is something truly unconventional for a German film, so I went into the theater expecting a good unconventional German movie.

What I got was a masterpiece. Victoria is not only the best German movie in years, but (IMHO) the best movie of the year yet. The tracking shot in the movie isn't only there for effect and a showcase of the cinematographers talent, but a essential part of the films main story, that unfolds around a Spanish girl named Victoria, that meets a bunch of "real Berlin guys", so they call themselves, in the middle of the night. You experience the story of Victoria in real time, you see live character development for instance.

That, the down to earth acting and plot make the movie so incredibly immersive that it becomes something completely new and fresh, which is incredibly rare in recent years. I don't want to give away more about the plot, so I'll talk about the acting. The acting in this movie is fantastic, the dialogue is actually completely improvised, so that the actors, especially the fantastic Laia Costa and Frederick Lau, become these characters in those 140 minutes and it feels real. It feels like they are actual existing persons.

The cinematography is brilliant, Sturla Brandth Grøvlen does a fantastic job in accompanying the main characters and even if there are some shaky parts, which was expected, its never annoying and the viewer becomes the camera. Another aspect of this movie that I adored was the soundtrack. It was perfectly suited in supporting the atmosphere and hypnotic.

I left the theater speechless, what happens in the final act will either throw you off, or you will be completely exhilarated. Either way: Watch this movie and support movies with original concepts, only like this we will continue to get better movies than the usual dog**** from Hollywood and co.

Victoria is a truly exhilarating masterpiece and the first time I felt like watching a new kind of cinema in a long time. Go and watch it. Its worth it.

I never really write reviews or tell anyone about the stuff I watch, but for Victoria, I just had to make an exception

I was never so drawn into a movie before, it was amazing. The characters act so natural you really feel like you are experiencing this night with them for real. No 3D or any fancy stuff that movies do today can draw you into a film this much.

Sometimes during the movie - because all the location changes are perfect - I wondered how much time since the beginning of the movie has passed in "their world" - and then it came to me! You are with them all along, there is no timeskip, no narrating, nothing that could put your focus away from whats important:

The five characters and that fateful night.

I tell everyone I meet that they should go watch this movie: once this has been to a few more filmfestivals and stuff, there is no doubt that it will become a massive hit. I think this movie even surpasses "the life of the others" and I definitely would recommend it as one of the best German movies I know.

...Is most impressive for its concept, the logistics needed to carry it out, and its sustained performances without a single cut. It hopes to involve the viewer as a participant in the story by following one girl's experiences over the course of two-and-a-quarter hours. It begins shortly before dawn, playing out in real time in one long, uninterrupted take from beginning to end.

The first hour or so sets up the characters as Victoria (Laia Costa), a recent immigrant to Berlin from her native Spain, meets four rather grungy local men while dancing and drinking in a flashy nightclub. They convince her to come with them as they wander aimlessly around the city, and then must go off to an appointment with a local gangster who wants them to pull off a robbery he's planned.

Unfortunately, the film really plods its way through much of the first hour, but of course the single-take concept eliminates the possibility for editing the dull parts. Ideally the script should have been pruned to establish the basics and then get into the main plot much sooner. Luckily the last hour and a half picks up both pace and tension dramatically once Victoria commits to accompanying these rather shiftless hoods to their meeting as their driver. It soon becomes quite gripping and much more involving with the plot's quick turns of events and limited point-of-view.

A night out alone for a Spanish immigrant, in a nightclub drinking shots she meets some guys she may lament, as they grab her by the hand and in one take she is enraptured, everything that she then does is caught on film, one piece all captured. On the streets over two hours where the past recalls a debt, a modest bank transaction to acquire, seek out and get, best laid plans do not turn out to be effective or thought through, it's not long before the state is chasing, running, lights on blue.

Wonderful performances all round, in a film that takes your breath away with what it seeks to achieve, and ultimately does spectacularly.