Beautiful scenery in the french alps, great acting and directing, beautiful score from Bruno Coulais (his best with "Himalaya"). Jean Reno, who is getting more and more into "pop-corn" stuff these days, has been pretty OK this time.
Don't expect too much of a "french touch", Matthieu Kassowitz really filmed it according to the most academic hollywood standards...which makes it puzzling in many ways, especially for european viewers.
The problem is with the plot, which is lacking credibility for me: an elite college in the middle of nowhere, in a public-education country? Eugenism developed without overall control of authorities? Revenge spreading over more than 20 years from childhood? It may be OK on the paper with all the convincing descriptions, but this superficial 120-minutes movie doesn't go deep enough to draw your attention without any doubt...
As a matter of fact, the director Kassowitz (by the way so good in acting, like in "Amelie"...), seems to take pleasure in not detailing the script to the audiences...you have to understand by yourself. Trendy since "Usual suspects" or "Memento", this elliptical process starts to really suck...! It's not because it's obscure that it is necessary well-written!!
To finish with, the end is not convincing, botched up...
Overall, an average entertaining thriller, with hollywood-filming technics in french locations, better viewed with home video for the photography. But certainly below "Silence of the Lambs" or "Sev7en"...I give it 6/10.
According to my friends, the novel on which it's based is a Masterpiece, first-class thriller: Jean-Christophe Grangé, "les rivières pourpres". To be checked out...
Don't expect too much of a "french touch", Matthieu Kassowitz really filmed it according to the most academic hollywood standards...which makes it puzzling in many ways, especially for european viewers.
The problem is with the plot, which is lacking credibility for me: an elite college in the middle of nowhere, in a public-education country? Eugenism developed without overall control of authorities? Revenge spreading over more than 20 years from childhood? It may be OK on the paper with all the convincing descriptions, but this superficial 120-minutes movie doesn't go deep enough to draw your attention without any doubt...
As a matter of fact, the director Kassowitz (by the way so good in acting, like in "Amelie"...), seems to take pleasure in not detailing the script to the audiences...you have to understand by yourself. Trendy since "Usual suspects" or "Memento", this elliptical process starts to really suck...! It's not because it's obscure that it is necessary well-written!!
To finish with, the end is not convincing, botched up...
Overall, an average entertaining thriller, with hollywood-filming technics in french locations, better viewed with home video for the photography. But certainly below "Silence of the Lambs" or "Sev7en"...I give it 6/10.
According to my friends, the novel on which it's based is a Masterpiece, first-class thriller: Jean-Christophe Grangé, "les rivières pourpres". To be checked out...