The first was Lars and the Real Girl. The story is of a young man with a mental health problem which leads him to buy Bianca, an "anatomically correct" lifesize doll to fall in love with, and the reactions of his brother, his sister-in-law and the rest of the town, to this bizarre behaviour. This film was trailered as a comedy, and it certainly had many comical moments, however I found it to be a powerful account about a troubled man who goes through a difficult emotional and psychological journey, but with the love and patience of others, comes out the other side a stronger person. Lars treated her so much like a living breathing human that i'm sure I almost saw her move a couple of times... This film used humour to lift what may have otherwise been quite emotionally draining. It was tender, moving and uplifting.
Official Trailer
The second film was The Orphanage, a chilling but moving ghost story produced by Guillermo Del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth, Cronos, The Devil's Backbone). It was beautifully made in a wonderfully creepy and massive mansion, with outstanding performances from all the cast and plenty of heart-attack-inducing moments where EVERYONE in the cinema jumped in their seats. The film used suspense to disturb, rather than gory horror, of which there was only one scene. Mathew and me discussed the suspense it gave but also the suspension of disbelief it required; so many things were left unanswered about the mystery, which made some of the story unconvincing. But, as the medium in the film, Aurora, says to Laura, "if you believe... you will see". The plot-holes though, do not detract from the fact that this is a great film.
YouTube Trailer
the orphanage was a great film, though on the way home I kept expecting to see ghostly children creeping up behind me - lol.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment on the round walk, i enjoyed it to and came across areas of greenery i didn't know existed either :)