Top 5 Films of 2011

Only rule here is that they must've been seen on the silver screen, that is, at the cinema.

1. Black Swan (US, 2010)
2. In a Better World/Hævnen (DK/SE, 2010)
3. Melancholia (DK/SE/FR/DE, 2011)
4. Little White Lies/Les Petits Mouchoirs (FR, 2010)
5. True Grit (US, 2010)

Yep, almost all of 'em 2010; Black Swan got a long run which spilled over into early 2011 while True Grit got a brief repeat at QFT.

2046 (HK/CN, 2004)

Something might've gone over my head here; it's rather subtle and mannered, with a sci-fi dimension; works best when concentrating on Chow's various loves and the associated events.

There's some nice tonal photography as one would expect from WKW, but it's difficult to get too enthusiastic about it overall.

4 (RU, 2005)

Again, I will have to plead to being a slight Russophile when it comes to film; after FR, RU is, I'd argue the second greatest non-Anglophone film producing country out there...The first part of the movie introduces the 3 main protagonists chatting in an bar. The vaguely attractive prostitute Marina returns to her remote rural homeplace to attend a funeral. It is this sometimes outré sequence which takes up the greater part of the film and we learn only a little of what happens the other two.

It's an engaging (in places fascinating), articulate, original, offbeat, dimly lit, downbeat movie, with occasional sly humour. There are some interesting departures in this film; it surely deserves a higher rating on IMDB. Would probably have made it to annual top 5 had I seen it in a cinema. Makes me want to visit RU.

I Walked with a Zombie (US, 1943)

Another installment in BBC2's early morning run of early horror/Jacques Tourneur classics. If Cat People was a horror, but came on like a noir, could not the same be said of IWWAZ? True, the supernatural isn't typically a feature of the archetypal gritty urban noir, but the complex, slightly choppy plot, remote island location and chiaroscuro photography are pure noir.

Having heard the Roky Erikson song back in the day (or, at least, REM's cover of it), I was expecting more of a gaudy, psychedelic, trashy affair (yeah, I know, 1943, too early for that). A better film than Cat People.

Cat People (US, 1942)

Generally cited as an example of an early horror as opposed to noir, it gets a good write-up on Noir of the Week; it's not bad, but I find it hard to see why Steve O is so enthused. There's some good noir photography particularly the swimming pool scene and the bus scene immediately after it.

The Baader Meinhof Complex / Der Baader Meinhof Komplex (DE, 2008)

Largely factual portrayal of unsympathetic terrorists of the RAF (Red Army Faction) and their campaign in mid-70's Germany. My first movie of the Christmas holiday season.

The Pumpkin Eater (UK, 1964)

Adapted from a Penelope Mortimer novel which would appear to be largely autobiographical. Perhaps a slightly dated film in terms of dialogue and subject matter, it's timelessly beautiful however, and made all the more beautiful by the beautiful Anne Bancroft.

Electra Glide in Blue (US, 1973)

Robert Blake as the Arizona motorcycle cop keen on a promotion to the homicide squad.

Slightly inconsistent but always compelling, recalling (a little) Vanishing Point and Easy Rider; it has "something" to it, a B/cult movie feel.

Diamonds of the Night / Démanty noci (CZ-SK 1964)

Short (< 70 mins) early Czechoslovak new wave feature which follows 2 young male escapees from a concentration camp-bound train as they attempt to survive, fleeing cross-country. Flashbacks illustrate brief scenes prior to the occupation, the boys thoughts and their likely fate.

A recurring theme then of the 60's CZ-SK corpus, with the same recent historicity, simplicity and experimentalism. I'm lucky enough to have seen a few of these since starting this bog.

• Q1. The Czechoslovak new wave was better than the French new wave. Discuss.

Tulpan (KZ, 2008)

Unsentimental portrayal of an isolated shepherding family/community in Kazakhstan, plus a rare opportunity to see the bleakly beautiful steppe on film.

Une Femme Douce/A Gentle Woman(FR, 1969)

Film adaptation of a Dostoyevsky novella which charts the marriage of a young student and her cold pawn-broker husband. A fairly typical Bressonian piece - sparse, good-looking and unhappy.

Tomboy (FR, 2011)

A young girl passes herself off as a boy and soon plays football and fights with the best of them. Eventually the practicalities catch up with her and the truth is faced up to - it's not all bad though.

It's a 'nice' piece and well filmed.

The Awakening (UK, 2011)

A decent supernatural/psychological thriller starring Rebecca Hall.

The Cremator/Spalovac Mrtvol (CZ, 1969)

A banal yet curious crematorium operator of dubious German bloodline, expands his business in the recently occupied Czechoslovakia. Despite intelligence and sensitivity, initial reservations are overcome with little persuasion, and Mr. Kopfrkingl soon demonstrates an aptitude to his new masters.

While it is a sad and shocking film, there is, as with other CZ\SK masterpieces, some hauntingly beautiful music and cinematography, with what even now seem like inventive flourishes.

The Ides of March (US, 2011)

An almost all star cast delivers a reasonably good political thriller.

Jack Goes Boating (US, 2010)

Bumbler Jack (Philip Seymour Hoffman) learns to swim and cook and gradually gets it together with the likeable Connie. There is much to commend in this movie: rarely are the lives of ordinary, lost, anonymous people on whom middle age is encroaching portrayed on celluloid; there are some original, articulate moments, an underlying positivity and it's too down to earth to get quirky in a bad way.

Yet these somewhat negated by the flare-up between their friends Clyde and Lucy. While not expecting a happily-ever-after, the overall feeling at the end is mixed.

Intimate Lighting / Intimni Osvetleni (CZ, 1965)

Peter and his beautiful girlfriend visit friend and fellow musician Bambas and his family in the sticks. No major events or revelations occur here, but the performances are entirely natural and it's beautifully filmed.

Kiss Me Deadly (US, 1955)

Superior, stylish, mysterious late-noir.

Amen (FR/RO/DE, 2002)

Recounts the actions of SS Man Kurt Gerstein whose efforts to alert the Vatican to Nazi atrocities in the East were largely ignored.

It's a rather long film, and perhaps lacking in comparison with other similar WWII dramas.

Post Mortem (Chile, 2010)

An offbeat, morbid and easy to follow yet puzzling film, with some nice pastel tone photography .

The Inbetweeners Movie (UK, 2011)

Entertaining depiction of four suburban lads between seconday school and further education/working lives, as they head off on their first major trip abroad. There's sun, booze, chicks, gross-out moments and laughs aplenty.

Melancholia (DK/SE/FR/DE, 2011)

Divided into 2 segments, each told from the perspective of sisters Justine (Nina Persson lookalike Kirsten Dunst) and Claire (the always sincere and watchable Charlotte Gainsbourg).

The first part charts the disintegration of Justine's nuptial celebrations. The second meanwhile deals with the run-up to a one-off cosmic event: the appearance of stray planet Melancholia.

The cinematography is strong throughout and in places inventive and beautiful. Can't say I've ever been a fan of Lars Von Trier, but have always been a doom lover.

One of the year's better movies.

Midnight in Paris (US/FR, 2011)

A magic realism taxi (yes) draws American screenwriter Gil deep into Paris' early C20 golden age, trotting out a predictable succession of its luminaries - Picasso, Hemmingway, Dali - inspiration surely for his upcoming novel...meanwhile his bride-to-be is unwilling to join in his late night city excursions, and they begin to grow apart.

Talked up as being one of his best and a strong return to form, this is fairly regular Woody Allen fare.

Tyrannosaur (UK, 2011)

Peter Mullen as the angry and frustrated council-house dweller, prone to aggressive outbursts, yet retaining morality and decency. Olivia Colman's Hannah plays the outwardly well-to-do charity shop worker whose home situation is anything but desirable.

The scenes of inter-class tenderness may seem a tad idealistic, and it's sometimes heavy viewing. Both lead performances very good.

The Leopard/Il Gattopardo (IT, 1963)

Set in Sicily around the time of Italian Unification, this screen adaptation of the novel of the same name impresses with opulent sets, authentic costumes and fine scenery. It's a little on the boring side though - one for the Italophiles and/or history buffs.

My Blueberry Nights (US/HK, 2007)

Ever seen a trailer clip and thought "That looks really good, must see it"? So it was with this, Wong Kar Wai's first English language feature; it's not bad, but feels a bit studied in places, particularly the early cafe scenes. Norah Jones' performance (her first too) holds up well though and the cinematography is, not unexpectedly, very good.

Colombiana (US, 2011)

Proof were it required that anything bearing the name Luc Besson is overrated. Eminently missable.

1900 (IT, 1976)

Seen through the perspective of childhood friends-of-a-sort, Angelo and Olmo (played by the youthful-ish Robert de Niro and Gerard Depardieu respectively), this ambitious grand sweep of a historical melodrama stretches from agrarian disputes at the start of C20 to the eventual appearance of the blackshirts to liberation in 1945.

It's uneven and a little far-fetched (cf 'The Dreamers'), in places crudely and unnecessarily overacted, and beset by the preponderant glorification of the communist movement, ever-present in European arthouse historical dramas, particularly those Italian. Somewhat curious that almost all the major parts are taken by non-Italian actors (Burt Lancaster and Donald Sutherland are in there too). This 2-disc DVD version appears to be dubbed in English, with no Italian dialogue option. The subtitles remained on in any case.

Not Bertolucci's finest momement, but Emilia, the Parmense, the Po Valley and Dominque Sanda are, as always, resplendent however, and despite its (in)famous lengthiness, it doesn't feel overly long.

Lo Straniero/L'Etranger/The Outsider (IT/FR, 1967)

I read 'The Outsider' by Albert Camus at 19, not expecting much, but soon found it unputdownable, pausing for a smoke every time Meursault did in the book. On finishing it, there was a sensation of having read something truly outstanding, concise, articulate, not-happy yet hugely likeable. It remains an all-time favourite, unequalled until I read Donna Tart's 'The Secret History' some years later.

What of the film?

Beautiful Lies/De vrais mensonges (FR, 2010)

A tiresome and rather obvious romantic comedy.

In a Better World / Hævnen (DK, 2010)

This articulate, intelligent film subtly explores notions of love and loss, respect and revenge, adulthood and childhood, grief and friendship, matrimony and family. Whatever parallels may exist between Anton's professional situation (the tattooed surgeon works in a bandit region of Kenya) and that of his family at home in Denmark are thankfully not laboured upon. It is excellently shot too.

An unexpected gem - in this year's top 3, defo.

Eyes Without a Face / Les yeux sans visage (FR, 1960)

Pessimistic one-of-a-kind surgical-sci-fi-gothic-horror-crime-noir curio piece. It's worth a look, sure, but the retrospective hyperbole surrounding it proves to be a little overstated.

In terms of its economic good looks, it resembles other French films of the era (Last Year at Marienbad, Pickpocket).

Ascenseur pour l'échafaud / Elevator to the Gallows (FR, 1958)

Owing more to European/French noir than the nouvelle vague, this depiction of an adulterous-crime-goes-horribly-wrong is known for being hastily scored by Miles Davis.

What little I've seen of Malle's previously (Lacombe Lucien, Milou en Mai) did not disappoint, and while this doesn't either, it is, I think, slightly overrated.

Slunce, seno, jahody (CZ, 1984)

Acceptable rural melodrama.

The Big Picture/L'Homme Qui Voulait Vivre Sa Vie (FR, 2010)

Not 100% credible or convincing, but any initial iffyness is dispelled by the scenes in Croatia which possess a certain absorbing, downbeat charm.

In a Lonely Place (US, 1950)

Bogey turns in another top notch performance as the cynical, flippant, aggressive Hollywood screenwriter-in-the-wilderness, harassed by a senior investigating cop for a crime he didn't commit but nevertheless manages to exude suspicion.

This excellent film comes replete with the usual hilarious one-liners and non-sequiturs, morbid curiosity and typically cool noir photography.

Sarah's Key (FR, 2010)

Complex, present-day/historical drama in which American-French journalist Julia (Kirstin Scott Thomas) investigates the little-known occupation-era Vel' d'Hiv roundup. The apartment she and her husband intend to buy in Paris unexpectedly provides a first hand link to her story. Julia is faced with a couple of tough decisions in her personal life as her research draws to a close. Will her sometimes harrowing investigation provide the necessary inspiration?

Sedmikrásky / Daisies (CZ, 1966)

Slightly irritating hippy-ish pair of female friends engage in a series of harmless pranks. Why 'Daisies' is regarded as a masterpiece of the Czechoslovak new wave is hard to discern, especially when compared against its deservedly lauded and internationally popular near-contemporaries ('Closely Watched Trains', 'Loves of a Blonde') which kept their realistic feet planted firmly on the ground.

There's probably a commendable statement of some description in there, like: "Don't be trodding on the communist bourgeoise's silver dinner plates" ...or something. The best cinema is not about making a point though, but simply telling a story; while some of the greats do not necessarily have linear plots or much at all by way of narrative, this is just too flighty, arty-farty and "not-in-a-good-way" quirky.

On the plus side, it certainly still looks good, with what must have for its time been very inventive and experimental photography; it also appears to have ruffled the feathers of the collective powers-that-were sufficiently for it to be banned for many years.

The Guard (IE, 2011)

Predictably stage Irish farce involving an unorthodox sergeant Boyle (Brendan Gleeson), his misfortunate rookie sidekick, inept but dangerous criminals...into this throw a cool, slightly bewildered FBI agent, newly arrived in Ireland to investigate a massive drug shipment destined for the coast of Galway; bent cops, the sarge's fun-loving mother stashed away in an old folks home, uncooperative ruralists who can't or won't speak English...

As with most Irish films, this suffers from what I've called the 'Irish Film Syndrome' - roughly post Commitments, Into the West et al pandering to romantic and/or clichéd outsider notions as to what constitutes Irish humour, with an often outrageous romp of a storyline that stretches or defies credibility.

Gleeson as always holds his own though, it is handsomely shot; and there are a couple of chuckles at the Dubs expense.

Mishima - A Life in Four Chapters (JP, 1985)

Masterful biopic in which Mishima's later political intrigue is intercut with a number of illustrated episodes from his earlier literary works.

Combining a strong, easily accessible narrative with almost 'more than life-like' photography and sometimes sensual atmospherics, this is an artwork of rare and enduring quality.

The Tree of Life (US, 2011)

The storyline insofar as there is one, is of Sean Penn's character's recollections of his eventually borderline-delinquent childhood in a wooden house in 1950's middle America. Brad Pitt plays the aggressive, dictatorial and rather unliked father.

This fractured, curious film is remarkably experimental for an old master. Some might make much of its jurassic, cosmological, theological and operatic elements, but the one constant is how good it looks from start to finish.

It's not happy or light viewing, but scores highly for its 'tone poem' photography and atmospherics.

The Dark Knight (US, 2008)

As good as 'Batman Begins' with perhaps more by way of black humour.

La Notte/The Night (IT, 1961)

Probably the poorest component of Antonioni's early-mid 60's four-part trilogy. It still looks good though (one rather ugly interlude at a small jazz club aside); the photography, while not his absolute best, retains his unique, timeless and instantly recognisable style. The unrelated, incidental episodes and conversations are thankfully still there; if this film suffers, it's from the typically Italian 'over-analysis of feelings'. The beauty and boredom of the surroundings is well captured , as is the night-time atmosphere at the posh Milanese villa where much of the action occurs.

Batman Begins (US, 2005)

An undeniably impressive, entertaining and satisfying big-budget thriller.

Rushmore (US, 1998)

The charismatic, confident lead Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) excels at a range of extracurricular activities at Rushmore private school, at the expense of his studies. He strikes a chord with millionaire businessman Hermann Blume (a typically deadpan Bill Murray), and becomes infatuated with the somehow, somewhat, attractive teacher Miss Cross. Despite eventually getting expelled from Rushmore, the school, its setting, characters and asides remain in focus.

It's an interesting, likeable, imaginative, original, quirky-in-a-good-way film.

Le Quattro Volte (IT, 2010)

In places funny, in others sad, nothing much really happens in "Le Quattro Volte". This unconventional, detached film lacks any real dialogue or characters, relying instead on atmospherics to convey the episodes and customs of the nice yet scarcely beautiful/romantic rural Calabrian village.

The fascinating charcoal-making scene at the end brings to mind the bell-making sequence of 'Andrei Rublev'.

The director's is quite the original and naturalistic vision; can't help but think that this film would have impressed more via a projection on 35mm rather than beta digital video.

Last Night (US, 2010)

Manhattan pad dwellers Joanna (Keira Knightley) and her husband of 3 years Michael (Sam Worthington) argue over his eyeing up of an associate Laura (Eva Mendes) at a party. It just so happens that Michael and Laura are both flying out of town on business, but what little interest exists here is in the meetings of Joanna (Keira Knightley) and her French ex Alex (Guillaume Canet), both writers of course, who, raking over their past, wonder what if...

The miscast Sam Worthington's pairing with Knightley produces no spark; equally worthy of relegation to the subplot is Eva Mendes.

It's a sincere yet superficial effort which will probably resonate more with a younger, yuppie audience.

Potiche (FR, 2010)

Have never been really sure what to make of Ozon; his work seems to run the gamut from OK but incomplete/not entirely convincing (5 X 2, Swimming Pool), poor (Les Amants Criminels) to good or very good (Refuge, Water Drops on Burning Rocks). Here again he switches tack to crowd-pleasing 'Stage French' melodrama; it's well produced, with a camp 70's look and feel, but slightly overplayed, and maybe a little long.

Atonement (UK, 2007)

Pre WWII stately English home in which the jealous, scheming, calumniating Briony wrecks the romance between her older sister and servant family's son who is jailed for a crime he did not commit. Fast forward some years later to WWII; what will eventually become of the lovers, and indeed Briony?

Surprisingly successful as a period piece (costume, props etc), eschewing easy morality, in places touching, and never demanding less than full attention. At the clever, slightly unexpected conclusion of the story, the question remains: Has there truly been atonement?

Touted on the DVD cover as being from the same director as 'Pride and Prejudice', this is by far the better film.

Incendies (CA, 2010)

Twin brother and sister travel to their mother's homeland (presumably Lebanon) to fulfill her last wishes, in the process discovering a great deal about her and the fabric of their origins. Despite the one-sided depiction of atrocities, it's a serious, sincere film which illustrates how war can tear a family apart and re-unite them in unimaginable ways.

À Nos Amours (FR, 1983)

Sandrine Bonnaire as the promiscuous teenager from an unhappy-if-comfortable family. The story flits from a Summer school to her home town, to apparent weekend returns from boarding school, to a marriage of whose only inkling we receive is a dress-fitting, to an eventual elopement with one of her admirers. Along the way there is much screwing and constant arguments at home, all of it unengagingly matter-of-fact rather than dramatic or shocking.

It's a slightly bleak, non-plussing kind of movie.

The Way (US, 2010)

Tom (Martin Sheen), after cremating the remains of his son who perished accidentally on the Camino de Santiago, decides to undertake the hike to Campostella and beyond himself. Cue 3 other pilgrims - a jovial, overweight pot-smoking Dutchman, the mad Irish writer and a sultry, cynical, chain-smoking single Canadian woman. Other caricatures abound: honest gitanos dancing in the firelight; flighty, independent-minded Basques; the arrogant French, exuberant Iberians etc. A kinship of sorts develops between the four principal protagonists.

Vaguely diverting, with agreeable mountain scenery and architecture encountered en route.

Following (UK, 1998)

Loner writer Bill fills his time 'shadowing', that is, following interesting-looking people around London, in order to find out more about them. Enter the elegant, well-spoken, manipulative conman Cobb, who, realising he's being tailed, confronts him; they get talking, and thus begins a sequence of events our hapless main character freely chooses but ultimately has no control over.

Christopher Nolan's short-ish pre-fame feature is pretty impressive - shoestring first effort or not. As expected, the time structure is played around with, events pieced together retrospectively and not necessarily in sequence. It's compelling, original viewing which still looks good 13 years on.

Julia's Eyes/Los Ojos de Julia (ES, 2010)

This convoluted, overly-long would-be psycho-drama/horror just doesn't cut it..
It maintains some level of interest, but is unconvincing and in places clichéd.

Heartbeats/Les Amours Imaginaires(CA, 2010)

'Heartbeats' revolves around a vague love-triangle of existing friends - shorty twink Francis, and the vampishly beautiful, slightly older Marie; both become acquainted with the classically-curled, ambiguous blonde Nico(las).

The main story is interspersed with 'after the event' cutovers/asides from some of the protagonists/extras; it succeeds admirably on its own terms without these, so why bother?

Very good soundtracking (Vive La Fete, Fever Ray) plus excellent, intuitive use of colour and costume which belie the extreme youth of the director (he's still in his twenties - early twenties, that is..).

A Blonde in Love/Lásky jedné plavovlásky (CZ, 1965)

Having long been a fan of Valerie and her Week of Wonders (1970) and more recently having marvelled at the beautiful Morgiana (1973), it's just wonderful to have some of the heretofore relatively unseen Czech New Wave classics to delve into. This thanks in no small part to Second Run DVD.

'A Blonde in Love' concerns the doe-eyed beauty of the title who meets a charming pianist from Prague at the local bandhall, and then a week later pursues him to his home town...

As with most films of the era, it has a timeless feel to it and still looks fantastic, there just seems to have been 'something about' the optics, celluloid and treatment processes of the time.

Interesting snippets of the regime at work here, from the documentary-like factory scenes, to the government planners deciding to locate an army barracks in this small town which has a surfeit of young unmarried females, to the lecture on chastity in the worker's hostel.

Friends With Money (US, 2006)

Nicole Holfcener's 'Please Give' was the best movie I saw last year, so I've been chasing up her back catalogue to some extent; my first LoveFim rental was 'Lovely and Amazing', not realising I'd seen it back in the day at the now sadly defunct Kino arthouse cinema, Cork.

And of course there's the wonderful Catherine Keener; last year it clicked, in a 'putting a name to the face' way - "Ah, that's the actress who's in all the good American indies.."

'Friends with Money' follows the lives and loves of four female friends. Performances from the all-star girl cast are strong all-round, particularly Jennifer Aniston's, whose straitened circumstances put her slightly at odds with the other three who provide the film with its title.

It's a light, enjoyable piece, funny in places, articulately not drawing any conclusions.
It deserves more than the 6.0 it gets on IMDB.

Synecdoche, New York (US, 2008)

Philip Seymour Hoffman as the put-upon theatre director in the kind of intense rôle that he's suited to. As with Kaufman's 'Adaptation' (2002), the creative process and actuality are cleverly intertwined; whereas the earlier film is relatively self-contained, 'Synechdoche' becomes a sprawling rumination on love, life and death with the proverbial cast of thousands.

Maybe a bit too clever and sprawling...

There are a number of engagingly bizzare visual gags - American troops in Berlin; the sound of remote gunfire on the New York set; the constantly smouldering flames in the interior of a house; the 'chance' meeting of Caden (Hoffman) and his psychologist on a plane bound for Germany. Strong supporting performance also from Samantha Morton.

Interesting article by Robert Williamson outlining how American indies have retained their original spirit while gradually attracting bigger budgets and stars.

La Cérémonie (FR, 1995)

I'll have to admit to a long-standing partiality to French cinema in general, and that Claude Chabrol is my favourite director of all time. He made some turkeys in his day too (Les Innocents aux Mains Sales, La Décade Prodigieuse, Dr. M), but this is a good show.

Starring Sandrine Bonnaire as the blank, illiterate housemaid in the employ of a well-to-do family, initially all is well, but tensions gradually emerge.

We're in familiar Chabrol territory here (not that that's a bad thing); the film is not without humour though, provided mostly by Isabelle Huppert's feisty, sluttish postmistress. The ending too, if somewhat casually clinical, is strangely amusing.

Nerds may notice some brief clips of 'Les Noces Rouges'(1973, also by Chabrol) on the TV in one scene.

If anyone is interested/reading this, my favourite Chabrol movies (in no particular order) are:

La Rupture (1975)
Les Bonnes Femmes (1960)
Une Partie de Plaisir (1975)
Les Biches (1968)

Sometimes, the order in which you see/hear things impacts which you like/remember best.

The Maid/La Nana (Chile/Mexico, 2009)

Winningly naturalistic, occasionally sad 'slice of life' centered around the household of the 40-something maid who becomes temporarily incapacitated through exhaustion. Very well observed, with pristine, clear-sighted photography.

True Grit (US, 2010)

The good people at Queen's Film Theatre, Belfast have put on a one-week re-run of this western remade. All in all, another good show from the Coen Brothers, with the trademark black humour and some great photography. The only nag being the quick, heavily-accented dialogue which can be tricky to follow in places; thus could do with seeing it again. I've not seen the original, but this version is probably the second best film I've seen this year.
Definitely recommended.

QFT is the best cinema in all of Ireland IMHO, and one of the main reasons I wanted to move to this fine city.

Archipelago (UK, 2010)

Could just tell from the first moment that this wasn't up to much. Pointless, overly-long, longueur-ridden, more like a TV movie - and a missable one at that. Unsympathetic characters whose faux angsty tantrums are triggered by 2 minor food-related incidents, and let's not forget the mumbling philosophising thrown in for good measure. Probably thinks itself very Antonioni-esque, and it's worth taking a look at some of the sycophantic user reviews on IMDB which attempt to dress up this garbage with intellectual hogwash.