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"Loktev"

And I've seen this - it's one of the best films that will come out in 2007. I feel hesitant to speak too much about the film in this thread, since it hasn't come out and any discussion of the film (though the film's plot summary is, unfortunately, everywhere) detracts from the power of the actual experience of watching it. Suffice it to say that through a blend of narrative rigor, Kerrigan/Dardennes inspired handheld close-up camerawork (the cinematographer was Benoit Debie, who also shot Irreversible), and an absolutely stunning lead performance by Luisa Williams, Loktev manages to take what could a tawdry, cheap bit of exploitative doolally and craft it into a powerful and evocative film. An incredibly auspicious fiction debut.

Agreed. A wonderful film--I would make every attempt to avoid hearing about the film's subject matter, etc... If you see the title on the shelf (after its eventual release), close your eyes to the rest of it, and pop it in.

If you already know you want to see it, I would discourage watching the trailer.

portnoy wrote:"Loktev"

My bad, feel free to correct it in the title.

Pretentious garbage. Hated every minute of it, and hated it more when the snobby, snotty director got up afterwards to blabber about it. Ooooh, some young chick is mysteriously DISENCHANTED with the world. Add to that the ridiculous implausibility of the "plot". Unwatchable.

***YEAH, THERE'S SPOILERS***

Did anyone else want to laugh through much of this? It was sort of a "Comic Misadventures of a Would-Be Bomber", and if I didn't think that Loktev was taking herself so seriously, it would've been quite successful as such. The terrorist fashion show and marketing video segments were hilariously subversive. And the racial rainbow of the terrorists! When I saw the vaguely Middle Eastern girl get in the car with the Asian guy, I knew I was in for an overtly Non-Political Experience, so I expected the ebony and ivory terrorist leaders, but when the British chick and the deaf guy showed up, it was all I could do not to bust up. Kitchen sink casting for a terrorist faction? That's funny.

And I had a really hard time getting past the overamplified ennui, which is a pet peeve of mine anyway. Yes, Julia, that is what eating pizza sounds like... if my ear is in the character's mouth! If you are showing an extreme closeup of her mouth as she eats, go ahead and mic up that shit. But if I'm looking at a medium shot or even a close up of a character, I don't need or want microscopic sounds. And that goes for brushing teeth, clipping nails, and scrubbing in the bathtub as well.

-Toilet Dcuk