JHLTimmer

What makes The Night Of stand out compared with other series is not the plot. An innocent man get's arrested for a crime he didn't commit, with racial suspicions, he needs to fight against the sometimes absurd injustice of the American criminal system. Bring in a charismatic lawyer and a stubborn routinier detective and let the battle begin. Stories like these are often stuffed in a 2 hour movie where you often feel robbed at the end of it as you have seen it all before. So no, the plot of this HBO mini series is not original and might not intrigue you straight away . But the way the plot is told certainly should. It's storytelling from the top shelve of cinema.

The freedom of having 8 episodes to tell the story, gives the creators great liberty to create continuously tension and to develop great character building. The acting is sublime and made me think of True Detective in a way. Riz Ahmed fits the shoe perfectly as the innocent Pakistan student boy at the wrong place in the wrong time. I loved his breakthrough role next to Jake Gyllenhaal in Nightcrawler. I'm excited to see his new promising Sound of Metal movie. He absolutely takes the spotlight here and his transformation once he's incarcerated is realistic. (Although those tattoos were a bit much if you ask me). Also, I hope to see a lot more of Amara Karan. She's unbelievably talented (and stunning) and after her role in Wes Anderson's The Darjeeling Limited and this series she has proven her worth. But the absolutely star of the show is in my opinion John Torturro as his eczema tormented lawyer. Torturro is such an underrated actor and it's nice to see him in a role he deserves. He nailed it to the last drop.

I sat on the edge of my seat (bed mostly) every episode and I've not spotted a dull moment. To not get bored during a series is a unique sign of brilliant storytelling and tension building. Even though I thought the ending was a bit quick, I thought it was all brought to a beautiful conclusion and I was sad it was over. But the power here lies in the quote; Live fast, die young. Burn out and don't fade away. That's how you won't be forgotten and how people will remember you.

For a lifelong movie-buff there's nothing more fulfilling and satisfying then to find a little gem like this film to add to your personal favorite cinema collection. Such an inspiring epic tale of romance, war and family, all told through the wise words of the native One Stab.

I was quite hesitant before I started watching it as it seemed like such a long film. I was scared to get bored. The opposite happened. I felt inspired and intrigued, because this film is about life. About happiness and sadness, death and birth, loss and wisdom. A film about being wild and lost, about true love and family.

The screenplay is amazing and I simply cannot understand that Sir Anthony Hopkins didn't receive an Oscar nomination for his role; he's brilliant. 90s Brad Pitt is irresistible as usual with his blonde locks and the rest of the casting is perfect as well. I always feel a strong appreciation for the Native Americans and I love how they are so much involved in this epic.

The film can feel a little dated at times but the breathtaking cinematography of the wild Montana makes more than up for it. Dreaming away into the wilderness through your screen makes you forget that this movie is not perfect. Yes, it can be a little corny at times. And yes, there are credibility flaws. But man, it's poetic, romantic and dramatic in its greatest splendor. Just how life should be.

Wow. I was positively surprised by this movie. After all the stereotyped, Americanized movies about the war in the Middle East this little film feels like a well-needed breath of fresh air. The action is packed and high class, the acting is sublime and even the plot itself is unique and interesting. It reminded me somewhat of the amazing Brazilian 'Elite Squad' movies, all-though this is a totally different war. The Iraqi actors are all doing an outstanding job in portraying the horrors of the war caused by the medieval terrorist machine that is ISIS. An absolute must-watch, not just for war-movies fans, but just for anyone to get a better view of the situation in this war-torn area of the world.