Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas

like a clock. precision, strange beauty, delicate mechanism. the acting, the landscape, the script. as pillars of an admirable work who remains the novel by Kleist but it has the gift to be more than an inspired adaptation. a film about justice and sin. and a splendid role for Mads Mikkelsen who gives to his character not only the traits of the novel but something special, powerful, entire convincing. the grace to use the nuances of Michael Kohlhaas, the wise manner to use the silences, the force of gestures, the beautiful measure who discover the essence of tragedy, the presence of Roxane Duran who reminds, in same measure, Elisabeth I and the young Elisabeth II, the performance of Melusine Mayance, the speech of Denis Levant who remains the perfect definition of the root of tragedy are the details who transforms an adaptation in useful support for reflection about great themes.

I gave this a 5 mostly for technique because that is the strongest point of the film. The film is an encyclopedic article as filmed by an art-house director- at least that was my impression. While the characters had legitimate, sympathetic motivations, and there were a couple of interesting discussions, there was no theme, no thrust, no spirit or spin. The ending is a fizzling out. Mads Mikkelsen, as always, can make anything seem profound, even though he only gets a line per twenty minutes of horse visuals- on the other hand, the horses were beautiful! Lol.

My rec: watch this if you really have time to waste, I've certainly seen worse, but don't believe the title, "age of uprising." That implies action. This is a quiet classic or art-house-style flick.

This is a European movie about European medieval times and it shows - no "cinderallisation" a la Hollywood, very reduced dialogue and a people's behavior and code of honor that sometimes feels very strange to us.

What's left to say: great production, great cinematography, great acting. Sometimes the dark and melancholic tone of Michael Kohlhaas reminds me of Ingmar Bergman's great classic The Seventh Seal (1957).

For sure, no movie for action-addicts, but like La reine Margot (1994) a great celebration on European history and culture.

Some people might not feel comfortable with this film, which is not surprising. It does move with a very slow pace and it is a movie about values. The question is, do you want a movie that might feel like a lecture to you? It isn't of course, but I would understand if some viewers would feel like that.

Mads is playing as strong as ever and the character is complicated, but has a strong sense of righteousness. Something that has been the downfall for many people. And standing up for yourself or others is not that easy. It's easier to just back down and take it, than to stand up and fight. But is it worth it? There are quite a few questions that you might ask yourself after watching this movie, because it does not answer everything for you ...

What would you do if the legal system didn't support you or your rights? What would you do if you tried to take someone to court for compensation for something that was taken from you, and then, because of this, your family is dealt a terrible blow? Knowing you have no way to legally seek justice, would you take matters into your own hands? And once you have taken the law into your own hands, do you simply become as bad as the original aggressor? This is not something most of us have to worry about, if we live in country where rule of law is upheld. But in 16th century Europe (and in some parts of the world even now) not everyone could rely on the law.

This movie asks us to explore these questions and more. It doesn't provide us with the passive experience of sitting there and having the story, the moralities, the emotions, fed to us, as so often happens in films. It presents the material to us, and ask us to decide on who is right or wrong, who is at fault, and maybe to ask us what we might do in the same situation.

Visually, it is sumptuous, organic, exquisitely beautiful. Rugged mountain vistas, timber, earth, stone and leather. And let's not forget that it has Mads Mikkelsen as the lead character, speaking French and riding horses. This is a combination that is hard to beat, for sensory appeal. I don't speak French so I have no idea how his Danish accent is accounted for in the film, but his steely stares to the horizon and his drive for justice, and the consequences that follow, are powerful to watch.

This film is definitely on the art-house side of film-making, and probably wont appeal to those who want everything delivered to them, but asks us powerful questions about rights and wrongs, actions and their consequences, while delivering a beautiful visual experience.