|
'Funny Games' movie review |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Written by Colin Covert (MCT)
|
|
Thursday, 13 March 2008 |
|
|
|
|
George and Anna and their little son, Georgie, live an existence of tasteful affluence rarely glimpsed outside of Ralph Lauren ads. They play “Name that Aria” with opera CDs as they tow their classic sailboat on the long drive to their gracious lakeside cabin. After they settle in, a bashful young man in preppie tennis whites comes to their door, introduces himself as a guest of their neighbors and asks to scrounge a few eggs.
Paul drops them, then politely insists that Anna give him a few more. He is joined by Peter, also dressed to play, also blandly pushy. The tension rises and George attempts to referee the situation. Peter takes an interest in George’s golf clubs, and soon more than some eggs are broken.
“Funny Games,” a bloody and provocative essay in anxiety from Austria’s Michael Haneke (“Cache”), is a horror movie in the truest sense of the word. Its terrifying story of a family under siege examines movie violence with a cool, intellectual detachment that makes the consequences all the more disturbing.
With a few carefully rationed meta-narrative winks at the audience, Haneke breaks the fourth wall and implicates viewers in the unfolding savagery, asking why we find such tales of brutality entertaining. It’s a distancing, artificial effect, yet after a few moments we’re sucked back into the survival drama. Although we rarely see the family being victimized — the carnage occurs offscreen — Haneke lingers on its graphic aftermath and the characters’ emotional pain. Naomi Watts, as the resourceful but terrified Anna, delivers a bravura performance. Tim Roth, cast against type as milksop George, is riveting, and Devin Gearhart as Georgie is every bit the equal of his adult costars.
The film is a shot-for-shot remake of Haneke’s riveting 1997 German-language version, but the new edition suffers a bit for being late to the game. The audience-as-accomplice idea isn’t as novel as it was a decade ago. Mainstream Hollywood deals with the same issue regularly, most recently just a few weeks back in the Diane Lane potboiler “Untraceable.”
Still, Haneke’s deconstruction of violence as escapism has a perverse, European elegance. There is no musical score prodding our responses, the camerawork is languid, and the matter-of-fact tone, echoed by the nonchalant sadism of the interlopers played by Brady Corbet and Michael Pitt, subverts our genre expectations at every turn.
Even if you’re already aware that violence is sickening, thank you very much. Haneke’s confrontational film stirs up distressing emotions and leaves you to resolve them as best you can. Good luck. You’ll need it.
"Funny Games"
• Critic says: 3 stars
• Rating: R for terror, violence and some language
• Running time: 1 hr. 47 mins.
• Starring: Naomi Watts, Tim Roth
————— | Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register. |
|
|  | "Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy's first law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one, and only truth." | |
|  | We're not that bright, even though in our own little world, we're geniuses. We like 80s hair bands and one-hit wonders, but among us we have respectable tastes, too. Metallica, Iron Maiden, U2. Pursuit of all things trivial is a lifestyle, not just a game. We like some sports, love other sports, and can find something to say about anything. We watch TV and movies and we've read a book or two, even a few classics (Yes, Classic Comics count!)
We call it insight, you call it what you will. | |
|  | Felix Wong is an outdoor enthusiast living in Fort Collins. A mechanical engineer by day, he is especially passionate about bicycling, running, and backpacking. | |
|  | Hola Amigos! I'm Sandra. I like to believe that people are 70 percent good and 30 percent dumb. I'm stickin to that story. Reading this blog might make you want to be good, but probably just dumb. | |
|  | Donovan Henderson is editor of NEXTnc. | |
|  | Here at Nextnc we have some characters. Get a sneak peak behind the curtain and find out what amusing antics our staffers get themselves into on a weekly basis. | |
|  | What is up FoCo?
I am a recent college graduate of Minnesota State University Moorhead. After recieving my B.A. in English and Mass Communications this past August I moved down to Colorado.
I enjoy long walks on the beach, candlelight dinners, and heavy metal. My hobbies include reading and writing, music, movies, and getting drunk. Some of my favorite contemporary authors include Bret Easton Ellis, Chuck Palahniuk, and Kurt Vonnegut. My top movies are anything directed by Kubrick. I enjoy listening to anything that rocks.
Right now I am just trying to get to know Colorado and FoCo better. Mostly in order to find the best drink specials on each day that ends in Y. So if you know where I can get a cheap drunk on, let me know!
--Drew | |
|  | Life's little morsels of inspiration, observation and encouragement seen through the eyes of the Nextnc reporter.
| |
|  | Ms. Giles currently lives in Colorado where she stars in her own private reality show. She writes aphoristic accounts of her life, taken completely out of context, and embellished with characters and situations disguised to resemble something close to interesting. | |
|  | over and out | |
| | My name is Michelle Turley and I'm 28 years old. I live in Severance with my hubbie, Brandon. We have 2 dogs and a cat. We enjoy camping, four-wheeling, and just being in the mountains. I like to cook, clean (go figure), flea market, and play poker. I have so much to say about poker... | |
|
|
