Die Welle

Plot:

The re-enactment of a very interesting psychological experiment based off historical events.

Review:

The german teacher Rainer Wagner (Jurgen Vogel ) brings up the subject of autocracy to his students and engages them in an experiment. He wants to instill in them that autocracy is still and will always be a threat to democracy, even though his students are highly sceptical of that. They believe we have learned our lesson, so to speak.

As time passes he introduces uniforms, specific salutions and titles. The students, being quite disinterested at first, start to take a liking to the bonding experience they share. His experiment was inspired by what a class in California did in the 1960's which revolved around the individual and the collective as a whole.

This film is thought provoking and raises questions rather than answer them, making this a film worth watching. Its an interesting view into group-psychology and how we are, after all, social beings. And how we also may lose our values and "minds" when we are in a group, the group becomes more important than anything else.

We also get to follow some particular individuals up close aswell as the teacher and how he personally deals with it. The movement they form is called Die Welle which means the Wave in english. Dennis Gansel is the producer here and he is making his second Nazi-related film.

Trailer:

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Fish Tank

Plot:

15 year old aspiring dancer finds herself in a strange situation when her mom finds a new boyfriend.

Review:

I heard good things about this one and had been wanting to see it for quite a while. I dont see alot of british film, perhaps because its, overall, low quality films or perhaps because it gets pushed away by the monster that is Hollywood. I'd like to think its a combination, but mostly the latter. It just seems so much easier for an american film to make it everywhere, I suppose its not  really surprising, but why that is is subject for another post.

Katie Jarvis plays the role of Mia, who is quite a lonely and troubled teenager. She responds to the, in her view, hostile world with hostility. The way she has been brought up and the family life she finds herself in has certainly added to her sense of misery. Her mother ( Kierston Wareing ) almost seems to be an involuntary mother and lives on her life the way she did before she got children. Mia discovers alot of things that any teenager do in that age, but with a big carelessness. One day her mother brings home a new boyfriend ( Michael Fassbender) and it complicates Mia's life even more.

The only real goal and motivation in life Mia has is to become a dancer. Ergo, the timeless theme of breaking free from the negative shackles, that you did not ask for, to become "free". It is still a refreshing look at the dreams of a young individual, perhaps because its a so called "kitchen sink" drama. It juggles the everyday life and the dreams, at the same time, in a good way. Meaning there are nuances and subtleties, unlike most Hollywood films.

The dialogue is very interesting and well thought out. I read somewhere it would give Pulp Fiction a run for the money. I dont know if I would go that far, but there certainly is some great lines in this one aswell. Katie Jarvis is doing a great job acting and is the shining star in this film but I really like Michael Fassbender and he is always doing a good job even though he has a supporting role. 

I just noticed there are, what could be seem as Hollywood flaming, in this review. That's not really my intention, but im just calling it like I see it. I think its a shame that films are not more provocative, interesting, strange et.c. than they are. Its a goddamn shame.

Trailer:

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