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Reviews
Beasts of No Nation (2015)
This Film Was Amazing.
Beast of No Nation directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga tells the story of a young African boy named Agu who is living in a village during the time of a civil war. The boy is separated from his mother and sister after they are relocated away from the violence. Agu, his father, and brother are forced to stay behind when the resistance attacks killing both Agu's brother and father. Agu, now alone must find a way to survive alone. He wanders through the woods and is picked up by the resistance and is trained to become a child soldier. On this journey, Agu is faced with unimaginable horrors such as, witnessing people be murdered, getting raped, and getting brainwashing into a killing monster. The film closes with Agu and his platoon surrendering and being placed in a refugee camp for rehabilitation.
This film is extremely powerful and leaves quite an impact on the audience. The acting is very well done especially the character of Agu who was played by Abraham Attah, about 13 at time of filming. He's acting skills were superior beyond his years, giving a very dramatic, believable presentation, even including a strong accent. Other acts that played their roles just as well included Idris Elba who played the Commandant as well as Kurt Egyiawan as one of the fellow soldiers. Their strong, believable acting played a big part in making this film as amazing as it was.
Cary Joji Fukunaga also did a wonderful job with the creation and filmmaking of this movie as a whole. He, himself has created several other films in the past such as Jane Eyre or Victoria Para Chino, both of which also containing some historical content as well. He also even received the Nigerian Entertainment Award for Best Picture Making and Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series among other awards for his work in cinema. With his filmmaking history and numerous award winnings, Fukunaga is very qualified to create this movie. Beast of No Nation was filmed in Africa in Accra, Ghana, aiding in setting the tone and mood of the film, since the actual setting in the film is Africa as well. The director included extremely powerful scenes to truly get the whole purpose of the movie across, how child soldiers come about and how traumatic and scarring of an experience it can be. Scenes such as Agu getting ripped away from his mother at the start, being pressured into splitting an innocent man's skull, having to witness his friends die all left the viewer speechless. The final scenes of Agu having to now attempt the almost impossible adjustment back into everyday life also shows the audience how Agu's struggles will never really cease since he had seen and done such horrible things at such a young, and impressionable age. The impact of this film creates is indescribable. The amount of detail that Fukunaga put into this movie in order to make Beasts of No Nation such a gripping and catching film is extraordinary. As the watcher, you are pulled in from the start and immediately sympathize with this poor young boy who was once playing in the street with his friends, and now is fighting in a war that he doesn't even know the cause of. The film was also fairly accurate. Children being abducted and morphed into child soldiers happens all across Africa far too frequently in areas such as South Sudan or northern Ugandan. Sadly this is a reality that can be seen all across Africa, children being separated from their families and being forced to join the fight, stories very similar to that of Agu's. All in all, this movie is a must see. Right from the start the audience is hooked, eager to see what becomes of this poor, unfortunate boy. It gives a clear statement and purpose of child slavery and its effects while also still keeping the viewer entertained. The filmmaking is fantastic as well as the acting making is overall just a great film. Beast of No Nation will leave you speechless and in awe.
The 33 (2015)
It was really good!
The film The 33 directed by Patricia Riggen depicts the events of a mining incident that happened on August 10, 2010 in . The day started just as every normal mining day did, the 33 men suited up for work, got into their bus that shuttled them down 1,700 feet and got to mining. However, in an instant, disaster struck. The mountain in which they were mining collapsed around them, leaving them stranded with minimal food and water. The movie unfolds by describing the living conditions in which they must adapt to in the 69 days the men are buried. The movie also includes the efforts in which the Chilean government took to save the men, how the families strong and never lost hope that their loved ones were going to make it out alive, and the heartfelt, much anticipated rescue that ensued on October 13, 2010, almost 3 months later to the day.
The film itself was extremely well down. The 33 stayed true to the actual events that took place, while also keeping the movie suspenseful as well as entertaining. The film did not seem to drag or get boring, despite the fact that being enclosed in a mine for over 3 months couldn't be very eventful. The viewer was constantly left eager to see what was going to happen. Were the miners going to be rescued? Will they starve before help arrives? Is the government going to give up on them? All of these thoughts race through the audience's head leaving them starving for answers.
The director of this film, Patricia Riggens does a beautiful job in making the film both entertaining and realistic. Riggens is a Mexican film director who has won numerous awards for her work such as an ALMA Award for Special Achievement. Her credentials for making this film are good. Riggens has directed other popular films such as the Disney classic Lemonade Mouth in 2011 as well as Revolucion, another historical film which describes how the Mexican Revolution affects Mexico today. The movie also contained a 26 million dollar budget (US dollars), which is low for the national budget, however even with the relatively low budget, the film still has an authentic feel and is, in my opinion, very well done. The majority of The 33 was filmed salt mine of Nemocón, Colombia. Since the set actually took place in a mine, it brings the feel ad accuracy of the movie to another level. The viewer gets a taste of being stranded almost two thousand feet underground.
When questioned, Riggens stated how directing The 33 was liberating for her since it was such a rough and traumatic event. She feels being able to tackle and create such a movie as a women is a step in the right direction. The overall goal of this film was to educate the world about the terrifying events that took place in a Chilean mine on August 10, 2010. The film was most likely made for the survivors of this incident and to honor how heroic they were as people. The director made sure of this by including the final scene in which the original 33 are together again, smiling and laughing portraying the bond they formed during their 69 days together underground. The film also was probably made to inspire and give the message of perseverance to its audience. When watching The 33, you can't help but to feel compelled to act as the survivors and keep going through the obstacles in life.
The film itself held pretty true to the actual story of The 33 men buried alive. There were however, some small errors that took place throughout the movie. For example, there was one scene in which the drill finally breaks through the rock and into the area in which the miners are trapped, the movie shows a stream of light flood into the room, where as in reality there is no way that the sunlight could be seen from that far down. Also, the film states that the first man rescued is a miner named Alex Vega, however in reality the actual first miner saved was a man named Florencio Antonio Avalos Silva at 12:11 on October 13, 2010. After being rescued, the film also shows the miners running into the arms of loved ones, when actually upon rescue, the men were immediately shuttled to the hospital for medical care. Since the film stayed fairly close to the true story, it didn't really contain any biased views.
Overall, this historical film was very well done. The actors played very true to their parts, making what they were going through very believable. The filmmaking and directing style also aided to the success of this film, by using dark, somber lighting and dramatic scenes such as when the mine first collapses it creates a suspenseful, informative, but yet entertaining feel. Everything dialogue and setting related seemed pretty true to what actually happened as well, another plus. The only thing that I wish I could change was the things that didn't stay true to what really happened. All in all, I liked this film and therefore would give it a eight out of 10, only losing two points for the occasional historical inaccuracy. I still thoroughly enjoyed The 33 and would recommend it.
Allende en su laberinto (2014)
This film was okay.
The film "Allende en su Laberinto" directed by Miguel Littin describes the playout of September 11, 1973, the day the Chilean government and socialist President was overthrown by the Chilean military with the help of the U.S. government. This historic film focuses on putting Allende Salvador, the President of Chile during this time, in a good light, convincing the audience of what a true patriot he was. The film depicts this political figure as a man who truly cares for his people, refusing to step down and surrender to those attacking out of honor and nobility. The film also presents Allende as a man who is constantly looking out for what's best for Chile and its people as a whole, remaining loyal to it even the under brutal attack by an invasive military as well as a betraying government. The director's overall purpose for making this movie was to show the general public that Allende Salvador was actually a very courageous and well-respected leader. In the past, Miguel Littin has achieved and been nominated for a variety of different awards from film festivals around the world for films such as "Actas de Marusia" and "Acta General de Chile" both of which revolve around Chilean history, similar to that of "Allende en su Laberinto". Miguel Littin is also a native to Chile, born in Palmilla, Colchagua, VI Region, Chile in 1942. Having directed historic movies in the past and being from Chile himself makes him perfectly qualified to direct a film such as "Allende en su Laberinto".
The entire plot of this film is primarily the rundown of what actually happened on September 11, 1973 in Chile. The film goes into great depth, moment to moment as to how Allende Salvador handles such an attack. The President on multiple occasions throughout is shown putting the needs of the people before his own, including refusing to leave the premises of the palace when the Chilean government had gotten word that bombings and attacks were going to ensue. After hearing this, instead of fleeing the country like his advisors had suggested, the President decided that the people would want him to stand tall and fight for the democracy they had faith in.
As previously stated, the director wanted to show Allende Salvador as a dedicated and strong leader, not willing to back down at the sight of fear. This interpretation is not openly said in the film, however, one discovers this theme in the way the President is portrayed and the choices he makes.. Director Miguel Littin may have been slightly biased in making this film. Littin, being from Chile, would want to show a powerful, strong leader as the face of Chile, making the U.S. out to be ruthless villains. This film is also strictly through the perspective of the Chilean government, and if this had been American made, the views and roles of each character may have shifted slightly. As part of being slightly biased, the question as to how Allende Salvador dies is up for speculation. In the film it seems as though he is killed by the invading forces, however, the autopsy suggests that Allende may have actually committed suicide.
Other films about Allende Salvador and the history discussed throughout include the movie, "Salvador Allende" directed by Patricio Guzman. "Salvador Allende" is a historic biography that goes in depth on the life of Allende as well as the events of September 11, 1973. Both of these movies contain mass amounts of Chilean patriotism and a love for their fallen leader. The directors show the President as a strong figure who remains courageous even in times of disaster. All in all, this film is simply okay. The acting at times can be slightly overdone and dramatic, taking away from the quality of this film. Some scenes also entailed overdone effects which distracted from the story line. The directing and filmmaking as whole, however, was quite quite good. Littin made the lighting of this film contain a very dark and grayish feel which aided in creating the somber, eerie vibe. Some scenes were also given no sound to help aid in this overall feel. Overall, I would rate this film a 5.5 out of 10. It may have been slightly boring at times but also contained accurate historic information and was quite informative.