3 posts tagged “favorite actors”
When this film came out I really wanted to see it in the theatre, but stayed away because I heard how violent it was. So I rented it from Netflix and watched it last night (and fast forwarded through the few gruesomely violent scenes). I really got into this film. Viggo Mortenson is such a proficient actor; in his films he makes me forget he doesn't really have an accent. He is gorgeously dangerous in this film, and his chemistry with Naomi Watts was palpable.
And it really is a romance, even though there isn't much physical affection between the characters. Oh, I'm not doing the film justice. All the acting is great; Armin Mueller-Stahl is creepy, and Naomi Watts is fully into her role as a midwife who naively gets involved with the Russian mafia.
I can't stand overly violent films, but there was less of it in this film than I expected. From what I'd heard, I expected a bloodbath. And yeah, the film is definitely not sunshine and rainbows, but it is quite watchable, and very memorable (in a good way).
The end felt slightly under-resolved, but the hope was there.
I spread this film out over the weekend, and finally finished it last night. What a dark film, and yet, it has such a pleasant ending. I was amazed by the acting in this film, especially by Ulrich Mühe. He is phenomenal as the East German Stazi officer spying on a playwright and his lover in the mid-80s. Mühe died earlier this summer, but at least we have this performance (and many others) to remember him by.
I'll admit, the main reason I rented it is because I loved Martina Gedeck in Mostly Martha, so I wanted to see her in other films. I wasn't disappointed in her performance, although I didn't fully understand her character. . . mainly, what drugs she was using.
I don't know that I can watch The Lives of Others again anytime soon, and I don't love it enough to buy the DVD, but I think it is worth watching. The Lives of Others is beautifully acted, beautifully crafted, and somewhat educational to boot. It is deserving of the awards it has won.
