This is painful for me to write since I am sure it will be misinterpreted. But I feel it is important to add an antidote to the many positive reviews here. First, be it known that I am a big fan of Wenders, which is the entire reason why I should seek out The State of Things and purchase it on DVD.
It was an enormous disappointment. First, the acting is a disgrace, almost from start to finish, across almost the entire cast. (I except the children.) Not just bad in the sense that I wished they could do better, but bad in the sense of obvious errors even an amateur should not make (mugging for the camera, flat tone, banal delivery, etc.). This is odd for a Wenders film, so it is not surprising to learn he borrowed the cast from another production.
Second, the music is annoyingly underdeveloped and cheesy in pseudo-porno mode. Third, Wenders lays on the "meaning" so thick and heavy that it takes no great intelligence to get the point... when there is one. And finally the plot is full of pointless moments, scenes extended long past their best before date and inanities.
As a fan of Wenders, none of this surprises me! That is because my love for his film-making is predicated on his ability to take risks, real risks, risks that can lead to a complete failure... and they regularly do! This also allows him to make utterly divine films like Wings of Desire and Paris, Texas. The End of Violence and Until The End of The world, flawed though they are, remain among my favourite celluloid experiences. Others still manage to be far more interesting than this effort (Lisbon Story, Alice in the Cities, The American Friend, even Land of Plenty and Faraway, So Close). Once you've seen all those other films you might want to grab this one, but only for one reason...
...the cinematography! Henri Alekan's work is, as always, truly divine. And completely wasted on this film, which I can only begrudgingly give three stars: two for his work and one for the finale, which contains 30 seconds of REAL film-making.
It was an enormous disappointment. First, the acting is a disgrace, almost from start to finish, across almost the entire cast. (I except the children.) Not just bad in the sense that I wished they could do better, but bad in the sense of obvious errors even an amateur should not make (mugging for the camera, flat tone, banal delivery, etc.). This is odd for a Wenders film, so it is not surprising to learn he borrowed the cast from another production.
Second, the music is annoyingly underdeveloped and cheesy in pseudo-porno mode. Third, Wenders lays on the "meaning" so thick and heavy that it takes no great intelligence to get the point... when there is one. And finally the plot is full of pointless moments, scenes extended long past their best before date and inanities.
As a fan of Wenders, none of this surprises me! That is because my love for his film-making is predicated on his ability to take risks, real risks, risks that can lead to a complete failure... and they regularly do! This also allows him to make utterly divine films like Wings of Desire and Paris, Texas. The End of Violence and Until The End of The world, flawed though they are, remain among my favourite celluloid experiences. Others still manage to be far more interesting than this effort (Lisbon Story, Alice in the Cities, The American Friend, even Land of Plenty and Faraway, So Close). Once you've seen all those other films you might want to grab this one, but only for one reason...
...the cinematography! Henri Alekan's work is, as always, truly divine. And completely wasted on this film, which I can only begrudgingly give three stars: two for his work and one for the finale, which contains 30 seconds of REAL film-making.