SamRag

Well, maybe you have to be a bit of sci-fi fan, or maybe just enjoy the challenge - or maybe just even be in the right mood. For what ever reason, I enjoyed this movie a lot. It had some of the challenging thoughts of 2001 (a movie I appreciate but do not enjoy at all), while at the same time trying maybe a tad to much to be like The Martian at times. But it worked. It left me thinking how much we really do not know. How fragile we just might be in space travels, while at the same time the stubbornness and geniality of our species might just see us through.

It might also have helped that Mark Strong is one of my favourite actors.

I was raised in the theatre, and this movie is perfect for the stage. I haven't checked it - but it just feels like a screenplay for theatre. There he would be speaking to the audience, but the thrill and the angst would translate so well.

What would I have done differently? I would have reduced the 2001 scenes, and the Matt Damon voice over a bit. I might have put a tiny bit more of reasons (or lack there of) of friendship and tension with the two other main characters.

Bottom line - this is not a 5 star movie! It is not a blockbuster, or big budget movie, but a very very well done set piece of a movie, that deserves at least 7 to 8 stars! See it, and let us know!

As I listened to the audio version of the book Along the way, by Martin and Emilio, I found out about this other collaborative projects of theirs, the movie The Way. This is such a quiet, soft paced movie, that it might have been easy to overlook it if one was expecting something different. But it leaves you with something that is hard to point out. The fairness, realism and softness while almost brutally honest ensures that this film will stay with you.

Many films before The Way ensure, with aggressive plots, exaggerated characters and often unrealistic story lines, that you are left with a specific message. The Way does the opposite, with simple outline, deep characters and almost non-event story. And while you will be left with a message it is almost certain it will be a deeply personal one, varying greatly between viewers.

I give it 9 stars, not because it is groundbreaking, but for the simple fact that it moved me and it was made with more heart than I have seen in a long time.

City State or Borgariki, is a twisted tail of criminals foreign and domestic and their dealings with somewhat questionable police force. Set in the capital of Iceland, Reykjavik, it mirrors some aspects of what has been supposedly happening during the last decade as foreign criminals take on the their somewhat softer counterparts in Iceland.

Each scene of this movie plays wonderfully on its own, with all the actors doing some of their best work (at least in this type of a movie) and filming and sound/music really well done. It was wonderfully surprising to see Jonathan Pryce pop up couple of times and the almost amateur actor Zlatko Krickic was superb.

The downfall of the film is its cutting. It could be possible that the story was somewhat at fault, but mostly it felt as each scene was not related to the next. There were even some totally unnecessary time jumping, which looked to be done as an afterthought.

City state would have been a better movie with faster pace, tighter story and cutting. Having said that, this film goes on my list of Icelandic films I recommend to foreigners.