The Film Of The Year

At the time of the theatrical release of M. Scorsese's "Shutter Island" I rushed to the cinema to watch it, dragging some friends along. It was really well done, perfect atmosphere, gripping plot, fine acting. Critics and viewers were talking about the "film of the year", and 2010 had not even started yet.

A little bit later another film opened in cinemas, with a few people claiming that it was actually better than "Shutter Island". At least they were few from my point of view. The film was R. Polanski's "The Ghost Writer". I tried to convince the same group of people coming along at a screening, but they did not look very enthusiastic about it. This was the reason that made me miss the theatrical release of the film. I thought of going alone, but, at least for me, this is a somewhat tough decision to make. I like to have someone to make conversation on the film after the end credits. I have been to the cinema alone only three times in my life. Two of them were with the Jim Jarmusch films "Coffee and Cigarettes" and "The Limits Of Control". The third was "The Bourne Supremacy". But all the above are beside the point. Anyway, time passed and I forgot about the film.

Then summer came, along with the anticipation of the new Christopher Nolan film, the famous "Inception", the new "film of the year". Watching it on the big screen was a bit of an adventure for me, and I finally managed to, after my arrival in the Netherlands. It was a really surprising experience, with its plot being a finely crafted complex mathematical equasion, and an almost immaculate job by Mr Nolan whose narrative techniques are constantly improving. And what is more, it is based on an oiginal idea and not on a book or another medium.

And today I managed to get a hold of a DVD of "The Ghost Writer". The film is perfect in creating a dark and sinister atmosphere, with the distinct touch of Roman Polanski. The directing is brilliant, the characters are colourful in a fine yet exaggerated way, and the storytelling filled with suspense.

In my opinion, this is the true Film of the Year up to this point. "Shutter Island" was good, but overly melodramatic in some parts. The flashback scenes were a bit overdone with special effects, where a more "traditional" approach woud be better, in my opinion at least. The plot was clever, but after a while it became somewhat predictable. And last but not least, I think Scorsese has done his job better in other films during his career. I observed some directing flaws during the movie, such as the shoting of the nazi soldiers in the concentration camp, and I am not referring to the number of shots fired by the american soldiers that is stated as a "goof". I would forgive these flaws if I was talking about a younger, less experienced director, which Martin Scorsese is not.

"Inception" on the other hand has fallen into the trap of overcomplicating the plot, while the basic idea is irreprehensible in its simplicity. Don't get me wrong, Nolan is perfect for handling complex plots. But in contrast to his other films, the plot is based on a scietifically fictional background, and, in order to advance it, scientific-looking but otherwise arbitrary means were devised so that dead-ends could be avoided.

But with "The Ghost Writer" Polanski managed to deliver a film that is gripping, full of suspense and flawlessly directed, always provoking the viewer as to how it is going to be concluded. And when the conclusion comes, it sure is unexpected. Overall, I consider the film underrated, compared to the other two. It is obvious that the other two films gained more attention due to extensive prerelease advertising, while Polanski's situation with the law in the USA and the shortsighted haters mostly on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean prevent his work of being appreciated as it should. I'm not willing to take part in this dispute, but as a wise guy once said, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone".