MER OM OSS BARN I BULLERBYN (MORE ABOUT THE CHILDREN OF NOISY VILLAGE)
Recommended. 1928/29 appears joyful in this tiny hamlet in Sweden. The worst problems are taking care of a neighbour's youngest: "We have to practise because we want to become nannies." "But do you have to practise on my sister?" Christmas dances around the Christmas tree, finding an almond which means getting married in the new year, lead pouring to predict next year's events, painting eggs for Easter bring the year of Swedish traditions home. Cycling even if snow lies around is another Nordic custom exotic elsewhere.
THE AMAZING MAURICE
Watchable. Brilliant lines, certainly better in the English original than in the Polish translation, e.g. Peaches mocks celebrity names in English with no such connotation in Polish. Still, if you think of the cat's commentary that people constantly con each other and if they have no time, they hire politicians, it's impossible not to enjoy. And the whole film is brimming with such lines. The story's based not only on a string of adventures but also smart commentary on how to structure a bestselling book. The "furry tail" promises intelligent fun and it is. At a point some sound is surrounding. There are a few little downsides though: the Polish version seems to detract from the humour a bit and in Polish the mayor's daughter sounds peevish rather than wise, the baddies look truly unpleasant rather than amusing, the storyline is a set of individual adventures assembled at random and occurring with no particular reason. There's a tiny little post-credit in which Maurice turns his head surprised.
ARTEKINO FESTIVAL 2022
SANREMO
Watchable. The Slovenian offering is a quiet story of elderly people with dementia, especially a man longing for his long gone dog and wife. At some point you start doubting what is true and what is not - must be like in the disease. The elders' care home looks pleasant, the people are slim and there's nothing unpleasant about them, unlike in other movies of the kind.
There were 7 language versions to choose from and 5 subtitle sizes. You could pick "very large subtitles" - those were visible from a distance. And they were yellow.
ANATOMIA (ANATOMY)
Switched off. An awfully slow typical Polish drama about a terminally ill family member. Nothing much happens. The lead actress (Karolina Kominek) expresses no emotions, the same face all the time. Everyone is slow, even the doctor behaves as if he had time. Protracted shots of the city serve no purpose. And dialogues are ridiculous, e.g. finding out that all water is dinosaurs' piss. Nothing to hear about even when they talk.
Reviewed from the distributor's screener, cinematic reception might differ.
VIOLENT NIGHT
Watchable. A crazy, simple plot in a mix of genres: family, actioner, drunk Santa, heist, rich folks, slasher, fantasy. Lots of Christmas songs, some surrounding you, including the "Violent night, gory night" mockery. The soundtrack is about the best ingredient of this crazy mix. The reason for the Nutcracker collection is never given. There's an early mid-credit. Altogether fun enough.
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