a9901548 Reviews

Star (I) (2001)

Can 7 minutes be more entertaining?

[9/10 · 21 May 2003]

"STAR" is the most entertaining film of the great BMW film series. The ironic wit is great and the race through the city is superbly well done - everything fits here: the cinematography, the editing, the great music by Blur, the actors and of course the BMW M5 who gives the best performance of them all!

Enjoy this ride - you won't be disappointed!

10/10

The Spanish Apartment (2002)

Great authentic movie about student life

[8/10 · 20 May 2003]

This is a very well done film showing the life of international students during their "Erasmus year" in Barcelona which by the way is one of the most beautiful towns in Europe and is an ideal location.

The idea itself with all the different languages is great and gives the film an original atmosphere. There are some clichés about the countries but most of them are true! The characters could not better represent their different countries.

Having experienced "Erasmus" on myself during my exchang semester in Italy I can say that is movie is incredibly authentic. I had many experiences which were similar to the characters (except I didn't get laid as often). The movie is also quite funny yet not like all those stupid American college movies.

Finally the movie touches also some important issues like the change from student to work life.

9/10 (I may not be very objective though)

Lilya 4-Ever (2002)

Depressing but important film

[7/10 · 10 March 2003]

Moodysson's third film after the hits 'Fucking Amal' and 'Together' is far more dark than his previous ones but 'Lilja 4-ever' is a very important film that had to be made. It does not only show in an honest way how children are exploited sexually but also - on a broader basis - how the rich countries exploit the poor ones. This is drastically shown in the scene where the rich nice-looking family father with the BMW forces Lilja to play a nice school kid before having brutal sex with her.

I think 'Lilja 4-ever' is really worth being seen but for me it is sometimes too depressing and shows too little hope. But it is probably necessary to show it that way because it is certain that stories like that do happen. The film also really touches you and thankfully does not become sentimental. The young actress also gives a great performance: she not only plays Lilja - she becomes her.

Tempo (1998)

Inventive and entertaining movie

[8/10 · 10 March 2003]

"Tempo" is a really entertaining and inventive Austrian movie about the adventures of young biker-mailboy Jojo. The style is very inventive and full of pop-culture references.

This is the first movie of Stefan Ruzowitzky who later directed the "Anatomie" movies and now got internationally recognized with "The Conterfeiters" who won an Academy Award for best foreign language skills. Also great is the acting, especially Xaver Hutter and Nicolette Krebitz.

"Tempo" is a successful example of an Austrian film targeted for younger audiences.

Ice Age (2002)

Animation and entertainment at its best

[8/10 · 3 March 2002]

I saw this movie in a preview screening in Vienna and was absolutely delighted. It is incredibly funny and the computer animation is great and more realistic than in other CGI films like Shrek. Compared to Monsters Inc. which I saw a week ago this was definitely funnier and did not have this sweet and tame Disney style. The story itself may not be the innovation of the year but the characters are so lovely - especially the unlucky squirrel which is so funny that it deserves a leading role.

To sum up, Fox hit it big with that movie and (in my opinion) even tops all the other great animated features like Toy Story, Antz or Shrek. Ice Age is entertainment at its best!