Some people are saying that Kari Skogland could be the next Kathryn Bigelow. And LIBERTY STANDS STILL just might be the turning point that could make it all happen. This was Kari's first movie with a bigger budget and a few well-known names in the cast. But since this movie dates from 2002 and Kari since then never did make anymore movies with a big cast, I begin fearing that her rise to fame simply will not happen. Still, I wish her a lot of good luck, 'cause with LIBERTY STANDS STILL she made a damn good movie.
It's about a man, who calls himself Joe, and appears to have excellent shooting skills and a lot of connections. He takes hostage Liberty, the wife of a corrupt arms-dealer. He does that by cleverly having her cuffed to a hot-dog stand in a park which contains a bomb. Meantime Joe himself has a sniper-rifle pointed at her from a nearby building and keeps in contact with her through a cellphone. Now that's what I call an original hostage situation. I won't tell anything about Joe's motivations or demands, 'cause I don't want to spoil the plot. But I can say that the movie pulled me right in from the start and kept my interest 'til the end. And that was a pretty difficult thing to do, since the movie's story almost entirely takes place in real time on one location and the protagonist (Linda Fiorentino) can't do anything throughout the whole movie except standing still, being cuffed to a hot-dog stand. But a lot of things do happen, and I must say that Linda Fiorentino was perfectly cast and very believable as a women that would keep her head cool under such extreme circumstances. Then there's Wesley Snipes as Joe, the sniper. And, man, he was good. He never leaves the room he's in but delivers his lines with great finesse. And the conversations he had with Liberty over the phone were almost debates with good arguments from both sides. Now I was expecting the predictable with Joe starting to loose it at one point or another, making him do irrational things and making mistakes (something that usually happens to the bad guy in these type of movies). But Joe never broke a sweat and kept thinking clear until the end. Also Oliver Platt was decent as ever, as Liberty's husband, the man you would rather not want to have as a husband.
Director/writer Kari Skogland clearly doesn't like guns and with this movie criticizes the American Second Amendement (the right for all people to buy and own guns, I believe). And her message comes across very clearly with a lot of good points. I didn't think it became tedious at any point and it didn't feel like the viewer was being force-fed with liberal ideas concerning the subject. So all those non-liberals should stop complaining about the movie's message. Freedom of speech, remember? But I can clearly see why any right-winged gun-nut hates this movie. But I do think that this movie might just be a little bit too politically correct when it comes to who dies and who stays alive in the end. But that's just a minor complaint.
LIBERTY STANDS STILL simply is a decent, tense and thought-provoking thriller that, for once, doesn't rely on spectacular action-scenes or big explosions. Just a rather original hostage-story, a good setting, a decent cast, good filming and editing and an enjoyable electro-soundtrack by Michael Convertino (which reminded me of early music by The Chemical Brothers).
It's about a man, who calls himself Joe, and appears to have excellent shooting skills and a lot of connections. He takes hostage Liberty, the wife of a corrupt arms-dealer. He does that by cleverly having her cuffed to a hot-dog stand in a park which contains a bomb. Meantime Joe himself has a sniper-rifle pointed at her from a nearby building and keeps in contact with her through a cellphone. Now that's what I call an original hostage situation. I won't tell anything about Joe's motivations or demands, 'cause I don't want to spoil the plot. But I can say that the movie pulled me right in from the start and kept my interest 'til the end. And that was a pretty difficult thing to do, since the movie's story almost entirely takes place in real time on one location and the protagonist (Linda Fiorentino) can't do anything throughout the whole movie except standing still, being cuffed to a hot-dog stand. But a lot of things do happen, and I must say that Linda Fiorentino was perfectly cast and very believable as a women that would keep her head cool under such extreme circumstances. Then there's Wesley Snipes as Joe, the sniper. And, man, he was good. He never leaves the room he's in but delivers his lines with great finesse. And the conversations he had with Liberty over the phone were almost debates with good arguments from both sides. Now I was expecting the predictable with Joe starting to loose it at one point or another, making him do irrational things and making mistakes (something that usually happens to the bad guy in these type of movies). But Joe never broke a sweat and kept thinking clear until the end. Also Oliver Platt was decent as ever, as Liberty's husband, the man you would rather not want to have as a husband.
Director/writer Kari Skogland clearly doesn't like guns and with this movie criticizes the American Second Amendement (the right for all people to buy and own guns, I believe). And her message comes across very clearly with a lot of good points. I didn't think it became tedious at any point and it didn't feel like the viewer was being force-fed with liberal ideas concerning the subject. So all those non-liberals should stop complaining about the movie's message. Freedom of speech, remember? But I can clearly see why any right-winged gun-nut hates this movie. But I do think that this movie might just be a little bit too politically correct when it comes to who dies and who stays alive in the end. But that's just a minor complaint.
LIBERTY STANDS STILL simply is a decent, tense and thought-provoking thriller that, for once, doesn't rely on spectacular action-scenes or big explosions. Just a rather original hostage-story, a good setting, a decent cast, good filming and editing and an enjoyable electro-soundtrack by Michael Convertino (which reminded me of early music by The Chemical Brothers).