I can´t believe what I am reading! I usually don´t comment movies, especially when I don´t like them, but for this movie I have to make an exception. At first I have to say, I live in Sweden, and I do not like this place to put it in mild terms, so Swedish movies in general scare the living daylights out of me. People outside of Sweden probably can´t understand the media-hype that surrounded the release of this film, and it was #1 at the box office for months and months. Now I have avoided this film for the above mentioned reasons, until tonight when it was aired on TV. And what I saw was far worse than I could ever have imagined. Lukas Moodyson shoots as if he was filming with a homevideo camera! And those quick zooms! HOW is it possible to make a film look less professional? Now Sweden is a gay-liberal,socialist society, so I can understand why the story of two young lesbians, with suicidal intentions ect ect, (and I must add that Sweden has the highest suicidal rate in the world according to population) hit the heart of Sweden, but how can people from Canada, Australia, USA amongst others, relate to this film!? It amazes me! In every Swedish teenage flick, we have to suffer socialisticly twisted plots, about poor teens in the suburbs with alcoholic parents and drug problems ect ect, and I sadly have to report to those of you who thought otherwise, that this is the most cliché approach one can express in a Swedish film. Moodysson doesnt change that perspective very much, just feeds it more, and all of Sweden applauds it since he also chose to portay a cute little lesbian couple aswell. Moodyson is now, after 1 movie (!) considered in Sweden as the new Ingmar Bergman, actually I can understand why, its just the thought horrifies me deeply. The main resaon so many Swedes relate to this film, is that over 80% over the population lives is such small dreadful places as Åmål, and teens in these towns have nothing else to do but hang outside the hotdog-stand and drink alcohol, and have casual sexual encounters with each other, so surely I can understand why so many relate to it. I only wonder, should´nt there be more to life? Should´nt people WANT more out of life? In Sweden, the answer is. NO.
Reviews
2 Reviews
Legends of the Fall
(1994)
One of the most spritual experiences of my life
12 February 1999
When I first heard of Legends of the Fall I could not wait to see it. I don´t know why but I felt I had waited to see it for a long time, even though I had only seen the trailer once. I literally counted the days and hours to its release and I was there the day it opened. And it was indeed one of the most spiritual experiences of my life. Only five minitues into the film I could hear myself think "This is absolutely the best film I have ever seen". It was so intelligently made that I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
The way that it opened, presenting Brad Pitt´s character Tristan with such honesty from the first monent and never throughout the film letting go of the characters tremendous integrity, making every word he says come from the exact same individual. No other film has such a graceful and grandiose opening.
This is by far Brad Pitt´s best perfomance ever to come, the guy should retire now because his purpose as an actor is with this film attained. I can not understand how a film can be so well made, everything in this film so perfect, the storytelling, the dialog, the acting, the music and the direction is so well done and so thought through, that along with the deep messages and the morale of the film, you could write an entire bible in filmmaking.
This film containes so many messages and has so much to say that one can not take it all in by seeing the film only once. And it is funny how, even though I change and grow older, the film always has new things to tell me every time I see it. There is nothing you could want or expect from a film or story that is not found here. This film has so much to say about life, destiny and the choices we make and the consequences they bring us to. And the monologue of the Indian is so beautiful and so true, I get shivers down my spine only thinking of them.
The film takes us through one individual's life, his effect on his fellows, his wins, his losses, his happiness and sadness. And when the film is over hopefully we have learned to recognize that integrity is the key to a life well lived. That it is only through truth and honesty, to oneself and others, that happiness can be attained, and the simple fact that if this fundamental law of nature is not followed, we will fall...
"Legends of the Fall", in this case does not necessarely mean autumn. It is just one of the many metaphors in the Indian's way of speech. There is not any special scene in the film that is better than another, it is the experience combined that makes it into the most well made film of all time. True spiritual aspiration is the only thing that can result in pure art like this film.
The way that it opened, presenting Brad Pitt´s character Tristan with such honesty from the first monent and never throughout the film letting go of the characters tremendous integrity, making every word he says come from the exact same individual. No other film has such a graceful and grandiose opening.
This is by far Brad Pitt´s best perfomance ever to come, the guy should retire now because his purpose as an actor is with this film attained. I can not understand how a film can be so well made, everything in this film so perfect, the storytelling, the dialog, the acting, the music and the direction is so well done and so thought through, that along with the deep messages and the morale of the film, you could write an entire bible in filmmaking.
This film containes so many messages and has so much to say that one can not take it all in by seeing the film only once. And it is funny how, even though I change and grow older, the film always has new things to tell me every time I see it. There is nothing you could want or expect from a film or story that is not found here. This film has so much to say about life, destiny and the choices we make and the consequences they bring us to. And the monologue of the Indian is so beautiful and so true, I get shivers down my spine only thinking of them.
The film takes us through one individual's life, his effect on his fellows, his wins, his losses, his happiness and sadness. And when the film is over hopefully we have learned to recognize that integrity is the key to a life well lived. That it is only through truth and honesty, to oneself and others, that happiness can be attained, and the simple fact that if this fundamental law of nature is not followed, we will fall...
"Legends of the Fall", in this case does not necessarely mean autumn. It is just one of the many metaphors in the Indian's way of speech. There is not any special scene in the film that is better than another, it is the experience combined that makes it into the most well made film of all time. True spiritual aspiration is the only thing that can result in pure art like this film.
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