Thursday is movie day. Today another promising offering hits the country’s big cinema screens! Includes the historical epic starring Joaquin Phoenix and Vanessa Kirby “Napoleon“ by Ridley Scott (“Gladiator”).
If you just want to let the past be the past, there are two alternatives worth seeing: Xavier Gens’ badass revenge actioner “Farang – Shadow of the Underworld“ like “The Old Oak“ from veteran director Ken Loach. So if you don’t feel like immersing yourself in perhaps the greatest chapter of French history, you can opt for beautifully choreographed battles or a naturalistic social drama.
“Napoleon”
Ridley Scott has proven several times in the past that he has a knack for major historical blockbusters: ‘Gladiator’, ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ and ‘Robin Hood’ are just a few examples. With ‘Napoleon’ he now takes over the life of Napoleon Bonaparte (played by Oscar winner Joaquin Phoenix), who rose from a simple soldier to emperor – and became the greatest conqueror of the world alongside Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan. always.
But you shouldn’t expect a masterpiece, and that’s also because the 160-minute theatrical version reflects only one idea of Ridley Scott’s vision. The four-hour version will soon be available on AppleTV+. In the conclusion of his 3.5-star review, our editor-in-chief Christoph Petersen writes: “In the brutal battle scenes, Ridley Scott once again performs mercilessly – and there is also plenty of dry humor that exposes the complete absurdity of power! Yet the playing time of over two and a half hours is not enough to do justice to the full amount of material – this sometimes gives the impression of a visually powerful best-of […].”
“Farang – Shadow of the Underworld”
‘Farang – Shadow of the Underworld’ caused a stir at this year’s Fantasy Film Festival. The new film by ‘Frontier(s) – Do you know your pain threshold?’ maker Xavier Gens brings out the big guns when it comes to brutal action. The fights are not only excellently choreographed, but also tough as nails – even after an injury, bones protruding from the body are used to ram them into the carotid arteries like stabbing weapons.
In the official FILMSTARTS review, “Farang” received a very good 4 out of 5 possible stars. In his conclusion, editor-in-chief Christoph Petersen writes: “‘Farang’ delivers an unbeatable two-way combination – first he draws you in emotionally and then gives you the final knockout with absolutely merciless (and mercilessly well-choreographed) action!”.
“The Old Oak”
Ken Loach has been concerned with the British working class for decades – and has successfully criticized the social system of his home country. He even won the Palme d’Or in 2016 for ‘I, Daniel Blake’. Now his new film ‘The Old Oak’ is opening – and you can once again expect a cry for solidarity that is worth hearing.
The official FILMSTARTS review gave it 3.5 out of 5 possible stars. Editor-in-chief Christoph Petersen writes in his conclusion: “At the age of 86, Ken Loach calls for the last time on the solidarity of ‘his’ working class, for whom he has repeatedly stood in the breach with his films for decades (and has thereby achieved an astonishing amount in the ‘real’ world). You will probably look in vain for subtlety in ‘The Old Oak’, but this call for humanity goes straight to the heart.”